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Full Idea
The Argumentum ad Hominem is to press a man with consequences drawn from his own principles or concessions.
Gist of Idea
Ad Hominem: press a man with the consequences of his own principle
Source
John Locke (Essay Conc Human Understanding (2nd Ed) [1694], 4.17.21)
Book Ref
Locke,John: 'Essay Concerning Human Understanding', ed/tr. Nidditch,P.H. [OUP 1979], p.686
A Reaction
This is a rather more plausible account of it than the alternative I have met, that it is just to attack to speaker instead of what they say. This version is at least an attempt to derive a contradiction, rather than mere abuse.
| 12573 | Ad Hominem: press a man with the consequences of his own principle [Locke] |
| 23655 | An ad hominem argument is good, if it is shown that the man's principles are inconsistent [Reid] |
| 15842 | An ad hominem refutation is reasonable, if it uses the opponent's assumptions [Harte,V] |
| 14231 | We should always apply someone's theory of meaning to their own utterances [Liggins] |
| 6696 | The Ad Hominem Fallacy criticises the speaker rather than the argument [PG] |