Furious brown cat pointing angrily at easel painting of male cat proposing to female cat – explosive appeal to tradition fallacy illustration rejecting non-traditional marriage proposal

The Appeal to Tradition Fallacy

Cartoon of a female cat proposing marriage on one knee with a ring while male cat looks shocked and says "Get off the floor, I'm supposed to do that!" – humorous illustration of the appeal to tradition fallacy in traditional gender roles
Cartoon illustration of male cat rejecting female cat's marriage proposal by pointing at a painting of a traditional male-on-one-knee proposal and saying "Yeah, but not like this! The man proposes, it's tradition!" – perfect example of appeal to tradition logical fallacy

That's appeal to tradition: saying we must do something a certain way because we've always done it like that.

Thinking like this can lead to DISASTER.

In 1847, Ignaz Semmelweis noticed that women giving birth were dropping like flies.

Dark humor cartoon of a doctor dog in lab coat cradling three sad kittens beside a graveyard full of tombstones labeled "Young Mom", "New Mom I", "New Mom II", "New Mum", "New Mum Again" – viral meme about stepmoms, remarriage, or sinister "experiments" on mothers"Get this: His fellow doctors were dissecting dead bodies and then immediately delivering babies without washing their hands first!
Anthropomorphic German Shepherd in open white lab coat pointing directly at viewer with intense stare and thumbs-up, but the thumb is a covered in germs, next to huge dripping slime-green "GROSS" text – iconic dark humor reaction imageJust a quick wipe on a cloth and straight to the delivery room!
Close-up cartoon of a doctor’s filthy, germ-covered hand being scrubbed with soap and water, dripping with dirt and bacteria – key visual in appeal to tradition fallacy comic showing why Semmelweis was mocked for demanding hand-washing
Women were dying in Semmelweis’s clinic after childbirth at a rate of 30%!

Cartoon maternity ward piled high with cat skulls and blood – shocking illustration of childbed fever deaths caused by doctors rejecting Semmelweis’s hand-washing demand due to appeal to tradition fallacy
Meanwhile a nearby clinic run by midwives had a much lower death rate (less than 2%).
Cartoon maternity ward with happy cat mothers and kittens after doctors adopt Semmelweis’s hand-washing protocol – joyful contrast to childbed fever deaths, showing evidence beating appeal to tradition fallacy
He thought it was a lack of ventilation or overcrowding, but the conditions in both clinics were exactly the same.

Then, when his colleague died of the same symptoms as the mothers in their clinic, it clicked.

Cartoon of smug mad-scientist dog doctor dead on floor with X-eyes outside autopsy room, former colleague in shock – ironic appeal to tradition fallacy twist showing doctors dying from same unwashed hands they defendedThe clinic nearby weren’t touching any dead bodies. DUH!

Semmelweis begged his fellow doctors to wash with chlorinated lime to kill the smell and germs.

They felt insulted by the idea!

Cartoon of angry dog doctors in lab coats mocking a colleague holding soap and towel – iconic appeal to tradition fallacy scene of Semmelweis being ridiculed for demanding hand-washing in 1840s medicine“We’re doctors,” they said. “Why should we start washing our hands? We've never had to do it before!”

But Ignaz knew the truth. He shouted, WASH YOUR HANDS! and wrote books and papers to spread the message.
Cartoon of angry dog doctor in lab coat furiously writing a manifesto at desk surrounded by books – Ignaz Semmelweis’s desperate appeal to tradition fallacy after being mocked for hand-washing evidence
He even called them MURDERERS!

They just ignored him and laughed.
Cartoon of mad-scientist dog doctor in lab coat laughing maniacally while holding Semmelweis’s hand-washing manifesto – ultimate appeal to tradition fallacy rejection of life-saving evidence
Appeals to tradition are seductive. They feel safe. Sometimes, the old way is the best, but not always.

It wasn’t until Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch developed Germ Theory that handwashing became standard. They proved that invisible germs on our hands can kill and soap is our first defence.
Cartoon of Pasteur and Koch as dogs teaching germ theory on a board while a giant soapy hand scrubs clean – triumphant end to appeal to tradition fallacy after Semmelweis’s hand-washing evidence wins
Tradition can be very important and you shouldn’t always throw it out the window.
Cartoon of two dogs on a red carpet: one walks confidently, the other throws a dead fish out the window – iconic appeal to tradition fallacy punchline about knowing when to abandon outdated customsBut in a case like Semmelweis’s, throw it as far as you can.
Cute orange cat casually tossing a rotting dead fish out an open window with a smug grin – ultimate appeal to tradition fallacy punchline about abandoning outdated customs

Explore this fallacy with our Appeal to Tradition Activity Pack! 

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