(b) “The Duke yet lives that Henry shall depose.”
(c) “Wanted a piano by a young lady made of mahogany.”
(d) “You your father will punish.”
(3) Accent.
This fallacy springs from placing undue emphasis on some word or group of words. Naturally such accentuation may convey a meaning entirely foreign to the author’s intent. Newspapers are guilty of this fallacy when they select a few words from a speech and use them as headlines without further explanation. A politician may quote a sentence uttered by an opponent and fail to relate it to what preceded or followed. A cartoonist may arouse the prejudice of public opinion by giving ridiculous emphasis to some idiosyncracy possessed by the subject of his attack.
ILLUSTRATIONS OF FALLACIES OF ACCENT.
(a) “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.”
By giving undue emphasis to neighbor, the notion is clearly conveyed that one may bear false witness against all who are not neighbors.
(b) “You must not crib when taking my examinations.”
(c) What the “Spellbinder” said.