Logic As A Discipline Introduction To Philosophy Lumen Learning
Human life is full of decisions, including significant choices about what to believe. Although everyone prefers to believe what is true, we often disagree with each other about what that is in particular instances. It may be that some of our most fundamental convictions in life are acquired by haphazard means rather than by the use of reason, but we all recognize that our beliefs about ourselves and... If I believe that whales are mammals and that all mammals are fish, then it would also make sense for me to believe that whales are fish. Even someone who (rightly!) disagreed with my understanding of biological taxonomy could appreciate the consistent, reasonable way in which I used my mistaken beliefs as the foundation upon which to establish a new one. On the other hand, if I decide to believe that Hamlet was Danish because I believe that Hamlet was a character in a play by Shaw and that some Danes are Shavian characters, then...
In general, we can respect the directness of a path even when we don’t accept the points at which it begins and ends. Thus, it is possible to distinguish correct reasoning from incorrect reasoning independently of our agreement on substantive matters. Logic is the discipline that studies this distinction—both by determining the conditions under which the truth of certain beliefs leads naturally to the truth of some other belief, and by drawing attention to the... This provides no guarantee that we will always arrive at the truth, since the beliefs with which we begin are sometimes in error. But following the principles of correct reasoning does ensure that no additional mistakes creep in during the course of our progress. In this review of elementary logic, we’ll undertake a broad survey of the major varieties of reasoning that have been examined by logicians of the Western philosophical tradition.
We’ll see how certain patterns of thinking do invariably lead from truth to truth while other patterns do not, and we’ll develop the skills of using the former while avoiding the latter. It will be helpful to begin by defining some of the technical terms that describe human reasoning in general. Our fundamental unit of what may be asserted or denied is the proposition (or statement) that is typically expressed by a declarative sentence. Logicians of earlier centuries often identified propositions with the mental acts of affirming them, often called judgments, but we can evade some interesting but thorny philosophical issues by avoiding this locution. \( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \) \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)
\( \newcommand{\dsum}{\displaystyle\sum\limits} \) \( \newcommand{\dint}{\displaystyle\int\limits} \) \( \newcommand{\dlim}{\displaystyle\lim\limits} \) There’s an ancient view, still widely held, that what makes human beings special—what distinguishes us from the “beasts of the field”—is that we are rational. What does rationality consist in? That’s a vexed question, but one possible response goes roughly like this: we manifest our rationality by engaging in activities that involve reasoning—making claims and backing them up with reasons, acting in accord with...
This reasoning activity can be done well and it can be done badly; it can be done correctly or incorrectly. Logic is the discipline that aims to distinguish good reasoning from bad. Good reasoning is not necessarily effective reasoning. In fact, as we shall see in a subsequent chapter on logical fallacies, bad reasoning is pervasive and often extremely effective—in the sense that people are often persuaded by it. In logic, the standard of goodness is not effectiveness in the sense of persuasiveness, but rather correctness according to logical rules. For example, consider Hitler.
He persuaded an entire nation to go along with a variety of proposals that were not only false but downright evil. You won’t be surprised to hear that if you examine it critically, his reasoning does not pass logical muster. Hitler’s arguments were effective, but not logically correct. Moreover, his persuasive techniques go beyond reasoning in the sense of backing up claims with reasons. Hitler relied on threats, emotional manipulation, unsupported assertions, etc. There are many rhetorical tricks one can use to persuade.
In logic, we study the rules and techniques that allow us to distinguish good, correct reasoning from bad, incorrect reasoning. Logic seeks to understand the human activity of reasoning, which can be done well or not so well. The basic structure of reasoning is the “argument.” Our goal is to understand if an argument is a “good argument,” that is, an argument that is well reasoned and one we should believe. Our learning will involve: Bad argument (the ones with fallacies) can still be convincing, and we should not be tricked into believing them. Making good arguments to support your positions on questions and issues is central to “doing philosophy.” So, the Logic unit not only introduces a branch of philosophy but also serves as “training” for doing...
Our work with Logic in this course will equip you to: The Logic Unit text is the primary reading material, with links to additional reading or viewing resources. Subject matter is subdivided as follows: Christina Hendricks, University of British Columbia Reviewed by Ted Beers, Faculty Instructor at Western Oregon University, Western Oregon University on 6/24/24 As the first in a series of textbook introductions to philosophy, this text focuses on formal logic, concluding with its relationship to philosophy.
Considering its intended audience of those new to both logic and philosophy, the text succeeds... read more Reviewed by Ted Beers, Faculty Instructor at Western Oregon University, Western Oregon University on 6/24/24 As the first in a series of textbook introductions to philosophy, this text focuses on formal logic, concluding with its relationship to philosophy. The formal patterns of correct reasoning can all be conveyed through ordinary language, but then so can a lot of other things. In fact, we use language in many different ways, some of which are irrelevant to any attempt to provide reasons for what we believe.
It is helpful to identify at least three distinct uses of language: Notice that the intended use in a particular instance often depends more on the specific context and tone of voice than it does on the grammatical form or vocabulary of what is said. The simple declarative sentence, “I’m hungry,” for example, could be used to report on a physiological condition, or to express a feeling, or implicitly to request that someone feed me. In fact, uses of two or more varieties may be mixed together in a single utterance; “Stop that,” for example, usually involves both expressive and directive functions jointly. In many cases, however, it is possible to identify a single use of language that is probably intended to be the primary function of a particular linguistic unit. British philosopher J.
L. Austin developed a similar, though much more detailed and sophisticated, nomenclature for the variety of actions we commonly perform in employing ordinary language. You’re welcome to examine his theory of speech acts in association with the discussion in your textbook. While the specifics may vary, some portion of the point remains the same: since we do in fact employ language for many distinct purposes, we can minimize confusion by keeping in mind what we’re... Even single words or short phrases can exhibit the distinction between purely informative and partially expressive uses of language. Many of the most common words and phrases of any language have both a literal or descriptive meaning that refers to the way things are and an emotive meaning that expresses some (positive or...
Thus, the choice of which word to use in making a statement can be used in hopes of evoking a particular emotional response. This is a natural function of ordinary language, of course. We often do wish to convey some portion of our feelings along with information. There is a good deal of poetry in everyday communication, and poetry without emotive meaning is pretty dull. But when we are primarily interested in establishing the truth—as we are when assessing the logical merits of an argument—the use of words laden with emotive meaning can easily distract us from our purpose. �nMu�zSBx�1h� |��dPv��$��ĥM5�����ΑV����j7m�p~u1��?�^r.bn�ҟ�a/�NR-ֆ|�V�В0̋��~m��K�a��Ա��n����1�M��j"}EkN�ܴV� �cz����UJ�hwl�3��n�*{��3��A�6��,����ܝ$�18\S6c�������!e�+,���v�k�Pd��ᑋs�-ҟӖ� g�T�.�4ܝ���\ݫ qh��U,�H.���w�e�ˑ]�DIWy��`���ܔfu8.Sm���#\�R��Xp�+̮�5X6�=h�B�� ç�Y�az�8��� n��%y��QKTT>J�GK�����,��@<).�e$Q��"��4d`j���k�㥇�N��r#����;Z*D� �^Z��(<�#��L�H��Rؘ \�O��*�9���������z��<�z�[�Bo�-y�:���벀i��M�7O[����i>��h^�vT��y��GZ���=>���=�-�X�P�OES���n�q..nо�� ��q6�Z5H��{d|&zౕ������b`:h2�B��P�p��T2d*���k'㜀'|��i� ��]�k+ ��!��c�'��D�j�Ncb��N�͛k)�� �q�M&����ӹ�u0y�7C�e��dH{�|��В�k��e^a�7�+3�V )"���`�g Ӂ�r��b��䊨�ހ�9�pD���* �G����8d_5ۈMN�o���^��_M0�v��E0���`�kVp*�P�^���|m���h��h�� �8���m��HX�/r|S�������8�[��w�*�x����b� nӵ�` �H��KW3���f$�ܳ�k�G�鉨S7�[�sG�(N�%Y]�" c�M�W���^ ����G����ܷ�72\L�H�������=��%γ]n,=���#"���%%6���C��V��gq8g���N{���i��aK2϶��=L�p��X�s�jk���F��Q�rX�}|��A��a��##����=��h��5t� ErD]�������9�R�]Ĵ�GK � M^x��: iߏӻ�!���Ka�a&���x{�a���9����"�L�����b\�P���v�!���xz:����`�%'�{j��\�Liėn���z��x�;�(�� e<��4��u=d�X�e�D�ƖTm��ր�#*`-F_�}E�&�&95q���˹����� -G�F`q��D/VMoʹkG8��ԫ:ް��,ML{��!�n�P�V|ᠭ_� ����˨4O��o��?���`:�<�@:%���r�.��Q�`�i�0��s'���e�7Y�48�-/�6�laKӰ��ێ�����U� �q�ɓ00�p��}�w�ݝ�mq�7y-(X�h����s3�Jڸ�1�C"�lXz���At7�u�ӊ�h�.:�x�O'�7]�ך��H��{O����-�� %c�;Cp�N`�e^����@!\�V�j����)t� &i_��$�\|�(f;�����j�PF�I���-���k��A�:���^�͞ q�V������A�|��ߵ�N��E����3E.�ĿW:H�^ N����B�Fa%�*Ub��Y�7w�!�?����ڬ�o�J� o���J����l��)g�1�X�bykte��������`�...
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Human Life Is Full Of Decisions, Including Significant Choices About
Human life is full of decisions, including significant choices about what to believe. Although everyone prefers to believe what is true, we often disagree with each other about what that is in particular instances. It may be that some of our most fundamental convictions in life are acquired by haphazard means rather than by the use of reason, but we all recognize that our beliefs about ourselves a...
In General, We Can Respect The Directness Of A Path
In general, we can respect the directness of a path even when we don’t accept the points at which it begins and ends. Thus, it is possible to distinguish correct reasoning from incorrect reasoning independently of our agreement on substantive matters. Logic is the discipline that studies this distinction—both by determining the conditions under which the truth of certain beliefs leads naturally to...
We’ll See How Certain Patterns Of Thinking Do Invariably Lead
We’ll see how certain patterns of thinking do invariably lead from truth to truth while other patterns do not, and we’ll develop the skills of using the former while avoiding the latter. It will be helpful to begin by defining some of the technical terms that describe human reasoning in general. Our fundamental unit of what may be asserted or denied is the proposition (or statement) that is typica...
\( \newcommand{\dsum}{\displaystyle\sum\limits} \) \( \newcommand{\dint}{\displaystyle\int\limits} \) \( \newcommand{\dlim}{\displaystyle\lim\limits} \) There’s
\( \newcommand{\dsum}{\displaystyle\sum\limits} \) \( \newcommand{\dint}{\displaystyle\int\limits} \) \( \newcommand{\dlim}{\displaystyle\lim\limits} \) There’s an ancient view, still widely held, that what makes human beings special—what distinguishes us from the “beasts of the field”—is that we are rational. What does rationality consist in? That’s a vexed question, but one possible response goe...
This Reasoning Activity Can Be Done Well And It Can
This reasoning activity can be done well and it can be done badly; it can be done correctly or incorrectly. Logic is the discipline that aims to distinguish good reasoning from bad. Good reasoning is not necessarily effective reasoning. In fact, as we shall see in a subsequent chapter on logical fallacies, bad reasoning is pervasive and often extremely effective—in the sense that people are often ...