Ad Hominem in Argumentation

Emotional arguments (ad hominem) are messages directed to attacking a person, sidestepping the logical argument. In parliament, members of Parliament (MPs) use emotional arguments and language to influence their opponent or audience attitudes and behavior. While it may be argued that ad hominem attacks are effective in argumentation, it is also observed that they might have a bad effect on either the speaker or the audience. This chapter demonstrates how some MPs used stylistic devices such as anti-thesis, sarcasm, provocation, rhetorical questions and invectives to appeal to the recipients' emotions. Relying on MPs' speeches found in the Hansard of the Namibian Parliament, the authors show that although ad hominem in parliamentary debates brought some bad feelings to the recipients, they were generally intended for positive effects of winning arguments. These findings are essential in distinguishing the positive and negative influences that stylistic devices have on the audiences of parliament through different forms of ad hominem.