Strawman Argument

What is a Strawman argument?

A strawman misrepresents someone’s argument to make it easier to attack.

Example

A: We should improve our pupils’ English level by making English language as the primary teaching language in schools.

B: So you’re saying we should ban the teaching of Malay? That’s our national language, that’s ridiculous!

In this example, Person A never said anything about banning Malay — only about giving English a primary role. Person B builds a false version of the argument (that Malay will be eliminated) and attacks it as “ridiculous,” avoiding the actual debate about language policy.