Fallacy · Changing the subject
Appeal to emotion
Also called: Appeal to pity, appeal to fear
Using feelings such as fear, pity or pride in place of reasons.
What it is
Feelings are a fair part of many decisions, and a vivid story can show what is at stake. The fallacy is letting the feeling do the work of the evidence: being moved toward a conclusion that the reasons do not support.
An example
An advert shows a frightened family at night, then says, “Can you put a price on your children’s safety? Buy the premium alarm.” It never says whether the alarm is any better than the basic one.
How to spot it
Take the feeling out and ask what reasons remain. If very little is left, the emotion was carrying the argument.
How to answer it
“I do care about that. What makes this option the one that helps?”
When it is not a fallacy
Emotion is fair when it points to something real that the reasons support, such as anger at a genuine injustice. The test is whether the facts hold up once you are calm.
Printable sheet of all fallacies
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A plain reference you can paste into notes or an essay:
Quest2Reason. “Appeal to emotion.” https://quest2reason.com/learn/ideas/fallacies/appeal-to-emotion. Accessed 13 November 2026.