The Straw Man Fallacy involves distorting or exaggerating the opponent’s argument, and then attacking the distorted version as if it were the original argument.
The concept of the Straw Man Fallacy comes from the metaphor of a straw man – scarecrow – who is not a real man. Fallacies are statements or arguments that might sound reasonable or true but are actually flawed and therefore can be deceptive.
Straw Man Fallacy makes it easier to attack or refute an argument. Instead of addressing the actual argument of the opponent, one may present a somewhat similar but not equal argument. By exaggerating, misrepresenting, or fabricating someone’s argument, it’s much easier to present your own position as being reasonable, but this kind of dishonesty serves to undermine honest rational debate.
The straw man is a petulant debate tactic that distorts an argument to one person’s advantage. Watch out for straw men in others’ speech and your own.