Appeal to pity

An appeal to pity is a logical fallacy in which someone tries to win support for their argument or idea by exploiting their opponent's feelings of pity or guilt.

Examples:

• "I hope you like my proposal. It took me six years to write and I don't know what I'd do if you reject it."
• "Look at that poor homeless kitty. I bet it hasn't eaten in days. You should adopt it."

As with all logical fallacies, these ideas aren't necessarily bad, they just aren't good for the reason stated according to traditional logic.