Question

Why do authors use red herrings?

Answer 1

Red herrings, in literature, is when an author provides information that will lead them in the wrong direction. In other terms, it is meant to throw off the reader and make them come up with a conclusion or idea that is actually incorrect. Authors do this for many different reasons! Do you have answer choices to choose from or do you have any idea why authors would use red herrings?

Answer 2

A.
to represent the views of an opponent in a falsely negative way
B.
to distract readers from a weak argument by turning them away from the original topic
C.
to present readers with only two choices for handling a situation
D.
to support a broad conclusion based on a small amount of information

based on the answer choices it's more asking about red herrings as a rhetorical strategy than a narrative one

Answer 3

just gonna drop this here before I close this

http://www.literarydevices.com/red-herring/