argumentum ad Lazarum

Etymology

Latin Named after Lazarus, a beggar in the New Testament who receives his reward in the afterlife.

Noun

argumentum ad Lazarum (plural argumenta ad Lazarum)

1. (rhetoric, rare) An appeal to poverty; the logical fallacy of thinking a conclusion is correct because the speaker is poor.
   • 2013, Richard G. Smith, “The ordinary city trap”, in Environment and Planning A, volume 45, page 2290:

     Indeed, the geographical fact that economic wealth and neoliberal globalization are very geographically concentrated, with just a few cities in advanced economies being the preferred locations for the world’s major stock exchanges, for the headquarters of banks and other producer service firms, cannot be wished away through either an argumentum ad lazarum (appeal to poverty) or appreciation for the diversity of urban cultures (eg, see Myers, 2011).

References

• Pirie, Madsen. How to Win Every Argument: The Use and Abuse of Logic. Continuum International Publishing Group: 2006. p. 104. →ISBN