Red Herring

1
Red Herring

• Matt Zuccari
• Ashley Steenbergen

2

• The man tries to divert the conversation to
  something that is completely irrelevant but more
  supportive of his views. The fallacy does not
  work because it is a mere distraction that in no
  way negates or affirms what has been said. It
  rouses a new subject that is not important to the
  discussion.

3
What is Red Herring?

• Something intended to divert attention from the
  real problem or matter at hand a misleading
  clue
• Red herring is something that is intended to
  distract people from the real issue or argument.

4
Pop Culture Example

• In one episode of the popular series known for
  its satire, South Park, a court case ensues with
  the famous lawyer Johnnie Cochran being
  satirized. In the episode, Cochran makes use of a
  Chewbacca Defense that is a blatant example of
  red herring in the fact that it is only used to
  distract the jury from the main subject at hand.
  (Cochran arguably used a similar strategy when
  defending O.J. Simpson by rousing the touchy
  subject of Simpsons race.)
• https//www.youtube.com/watch?vl1QI4P0YqtMsafety
  _modetruepersist_sa

5
Red Herring In The Crucible

• Proctor (furious)-There might also be a dragon
  with five legs in my house, but no one has ever
  seen it.
• In act three of The Crucible, John Proctor is
  trying to prove the irrelevance of there being a
  poppet in his house that he does not know about.
  Proctor is showing how absurd the accusations
  being brought on him are by saying if there were
  poppets no one knew about, there might as well be
  a dragon no one knew about.
• Pg. 217

6
Red Herring In The Crucible

• Mercy Lewis- Its on the beam! Behind the
  rafter!Danforth- Where!Abigail- Why?...Why
  do you come, yellow bird?Proctor- Wheres a
  bird? I see no bird!
• In act three of The Crucible, John just admitted
  to committing lechery with Abigail. Reverend Hale
  said that he believes John Proctor. To divert
  attention from those accusations, Abigail
  imagines an invisible yellow bird that supposedly
  has been sent by Mary Warrens spirit to attack
  her.
• Pg. 223-224

7
Sources

• Definition
• "red herring." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random
  House, Inc. 10 Feb. 2012. Dictionary.com.
• Excerpts from The Crucible
• Miller, Arthur. "The Crucible, Act 3." The
  Language of Literature. American Literature. By
  Arthur N. Applebee. Evanston, IL McDougal
  Littell, 2006. 217. Print.
• Video
• Parker, Trey, and Matt Stone. "Chef Aid." South
  Park. Comedy Central. 7 Oct. 1998. Television.
• Example Photo
• Red Herring. Digital image. Rafe Sagarin. 2010.
  Web. 16 Feb. 2012.