The appeal to force, also known as appeal to intimidation or argumentum ad baculum, occurs when an argument is made that relies on threats or coercion rather than logical reasoning. Here are a few examples:
- Threatening to fire an employee: A manager might say, ‘If you don’t comply with my demands, you will be fired.’ This uses the threat of losing one’s job as a means to manipulate behavior.
- Using a bully to influence decisions: In a school setting, a student might say, ‘If you don’t do what I want, I’ll make your life miserable.’ Here, the implicit threat of bullying serves to pressure others into submission.
- Political threats: A government official might state, ‘Support this policy, or we will cut funding to your community.’ This example uses the threat of financial repercussion as leverage to secure agreement.
In each of these cases, the argument is centered around fear and coercion instead of reasoned debate, which undermines rational discourse.