The ad hominem logical fallacy occurs when someone rejects an argument made by another by criticizing the person (by name calling, etc.) who makes the argument rather than giving good reasons to reject the argument itself.  Ad hominem is a Latin term that literally means “to the man.”

In this three-minute video William Lane Craig calmly answers an agitated atheist who attempts to provide examples of when Dr. Craig has been guilty of ad hominem attacks.

After you watch this video, answer the following question:

If an atheist were to write a book that was not well argued, and you explained the book's main deficiencies, then would it be an ad hominem fallacy for you to say that the author displays himself as “sophomoric and unsophisticated” in that book?