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Quoting out of context
Quoting out of context (sometimes referred to as contextomy or quote mining) is an informal fallacy in which a passage is removed from its surrounding matter in such a way as to distort its intended meaning.[1] Context may be omitted intentionally or accidentally, thinking it to be non-essential. As a fallacy, quoting out of context differs from false attribution, in that the out of context quote is still attributed to the correct source.
Arguments based on this fallacy typically take two forms:
- As a straw man argument, it involves quoting an opponent out of context in order to misrepresent their position (typically to make it seem more simplistic or extreme) in order to make it easier to refute. It is common in politics.
- As an appeal to authority, it involves quoting an authority on the subject out of context, in order to misrepresent that authority as supporting some position.[2]
- ^ Engel, S. Morris (1994). With Good Reason. New York, NY: St. Martin's Press. p. 106-7. ISBN 978-0-312-08479-0.
- ^ Curtis, Gary (1981-03-26). "Logical Fallacy: Quoting Out of Context". Logical Fallacies. Archived from the original on 2023-10-30. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
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