Red herring

The term Red Herring is an English idiomatic expression. In German-speaking countries also calque Red Herring is found. Red Herring called a red herring, which should lead to a wrong track. It corresponds to the smokescreen.

Etymology

Literally called a Red Herring salted for preservation and smoked herring. By smoking, the herring discolored reddish and by the longer period of storage, he develops a strong odor. On the origin of the idiomatic meaning there are different variations.

An explanation goes back to the 17th century, when volatile criminals interpreted smoked herrings to divert sniffer dogs by the scent and so efface its own track.

Another approach goes back to an article published in a 1697 issue of The Gentleman's Recreation. The paper will describe how red herrings can be used because of their strong smell to track work. The herring is dragged over to the scent of a fox to deflect the Beagle.

After etymologist Michael Quinion of the origin of the meaning goes to an article by the writer William Cobbett in the Weekly Political Register from 1807 back. In the article the distraction of dogs by a red herring 'm needed metaphorically for misleading the press.

Occurrence

The term Red Herring is used in many contexts. It can be used anywhere that a diversion will be described.

Rhetoric

In the rhetoric of the Red Herring is an argument. He is in the argumentation theory as a special form of the argument ignoratio elenchi. In the ignoratio elenchi can come the impertinent argument also a logical fallacy of the person who argues. In Red Herring, the impertinent argument is knowingly carried forward to lead the interlocutor or reader astray.

Policy

In politics, the Red Herring is a propaganda tool to misinform the enemy or its population. He also is used to discredit an opponent against its own people. For example, the Marxist-Leninist Partij Nederland was a front organization of the Dutch secret service BVD to discredit the Dutch Communists scene. The CIA knew the action under Operation Red Herring. In domestic policy, the Red Herring is used to deflect attention from controversial decisions by the unimportant is brought to the fore.

Narrative Theory

In the narrative theory of the Red Herring is a narrative technique. In stories, as well as in movies and adventure games it is an indication that seem important, but it has nothing to do with the actual plot.

• In literary studies, especially in dealing with the crime literature, the term Red Herring is already one of the terms wrong track or wrong track used for a long time synonymous. In addition to the Cliff Hanger he is the most important technique for building a suspense thrillers.

• In the Film Studies at the Red Herring ran recently in the attention. He is often confused with the embossed by Alfred Hitchcock term MacGuffin. By MacGuffin objects or persons are referred to, although they turn out to be immaterial to the action, but progress on this, on the other hand leads a Red Herring viewers of the plot away.

• In adventure games where the player finds objects and thus has to solve puzzles, the Red Herring is used in the form of useless items. Example is found in the LucasArts adventure game Maniac Mansion a chainsaw with a reference to a lack of gasoline. Although the game programmers have been assured that the saw is never used in the game, one has speculated at length about the purpose of the chain saw. Ultimately, you will find the corresponding gasoline in the game Zak McKracken, a later game the same manufacturer. However it was also not use, because there is no power saw there.

Allusions

The Red Herring is often quoted in the manner of an insider joke, but then without the proper meaning; usually by picture or mention of an actual red fish:

• In the adventure game The Secret of Monkey Iceland can be disguised as a troll bridge guard the player happen only when the bring him an object which " looks important, but is good for nothing ." If you give him a red herring, which can be found elsewhere in the game, so he runs over the player.
• In the cartoon series Scooby -Doo, the character Red Herring is regularly falsely accused as the perpetrator.
• Bishop Aringarosa in the novel The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown distracts from the actual antagonists Sir Leigh Teabing. The name Aringarosa is composed of two Italian words, namely " aringa " and " ros ( s ) a", which is literally translated into German as " red herring ".
• In the computer game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas can be found on a bridge a red herring impaled and below the lettering: "There are no Easter eggs here Go away. ".