In defense of Nazi analogies

Most of them are lazy and bad. But that doesn't mean we should ban them all.

Hitler
(Image credit: (Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images))

If there's any cliché more tired than the Nazi analogy, it might be the claim that making a Nazi analogy in a public debate automatically disqualifies your argument.

Known as Godwin's Law, this rule states that in any discussion, the probability of a Nazi analogy being made eventually reaches 1, provided the conversation continues indefinitely. Godwin's Law was originally merely descriptive. But nowadays, if you prove Godwin's Law true by invoking Hitler or the Nazis, your argument is suddenly viewed as ipso facto risible. That shouldn't be the case.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry is a writer and fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His writing has appeared at Forbes, The Atlantic, First Things, Commentary Magazine, The Daily Beast, The Federalist, Quartz, and other places. He lives in Paris with his beloved wife and daughter.