Aristotle’s book of tricks

In the 300s BCE the Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote On Sophistical Refutations, a short book about the tricks people use to win an argument unfairly. He counted thirteen kinds.

One thing to hold: A list in two halves: six tricks that hide in the words, and seven that hide outside them.

Why it matters: Some names on that list are still in use today — “begging the question” comes from a Latin translation of it.

Sources: Aristotle, On Sophistical Refutations (4th century BCE), trans. W. A. Pickard-Cambridge · Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Fallacies”