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Title: This chapter may have confused you;


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2
Chapter 1.1
  • This chapter may have confused you
  • Rather, it was intended to
  • set forth the concepts of argument, validity
    and soundness, etc.
  • give you an intuitive understanding of those
    concepts
  • persuade you that there must be more systematic
    ways of testing an argument, especially for
    validity and
  • encourage you, therefore, to anticipate and
    appreciate the systematic skills yet to be
    learned.

3
Central concepts
  • Central concepts
  • Argument v. non-argument
  • Deduction v. Induction
  • Validity Soundness v. Strength Cogency

4
Argument
  • Notion of argument basic to logic
  • Arguments defined
  • A group of statements (declarative statements)
    such that one, a claim (conclusion), is supported
    by others, reasons (premises).
  • Conclusion can come anywhere what is the
    authors point?
  • Declarative statements rhetorical questions
    (which can masquerade as declarative statements)
  • Implicit statements (as opposed to explicit)

5
Analyzing an Argument
  • Illatives (L. ppl. inferre illatus to infer,
    inference)
  • Conclusion thus, then, so, therefore, as a
    result, such that, means that, it can be seen,
    consequently, hence, we see that, it follows,
    ergo, etc.
  • Premise because, since, when, whenever, if,
    assume, for, as, for the reason that, etc.
  • Intellectual charity--helping author to construct
    argument as intended

6
Non-arguments
  • Confusion
  • Explanations--when truth of conclusion is not in
    doubt
  • Conditions--if/then type may be part of an
    argument, but are not arguments per se
  • Analogies--again, may be part of an argument, but
    are not arguments themselves.
  • Once an argument has been identified, is it
    deductive or inductive?
  • Squishiness (multi-logical) requires context,
    judgment

7
Distinguishing is a squishy (multi-logical)
business Given truth of premises
  • Induction
  • Possible, but unlikely that conclusion is false
    (contingent)
  • If so, called strong
  • Usually moves logically from specific cases to
    generalization re those cases
  • May include weasel words
  • All appeals to authority, uses of surveys,
    studies, analogies types of chicken logic
  • Never valid or invalid
  • All intended to be strong
  • Deduction
  • Impossible that conclusion is false (certain)
  • If so, called valid
  • Usually moves logically from a general case to
    more specific case (hence deduction)
  • May include language of certainty
  • Virtually all arguments of form All x are y
  • Never strong or weak
  • All intended to be valid

8
Deductive arguments are intended to be sound to
succeed but they may not be successful.
9
Deductive arguments may fail be unsound for one
or both of two reasons
  • The arguments themselves are invalid.
  • I.e., the truth of the premises does not
    necessarily yield the truth of the conclusion
    or, alternatively, even if the premises were
    true, the conclusion would not follow from
    them.
  • The premises themselves are false.

10
An argument is
  • Valid if the truth of the premises guarantees
    the truth of the conclusion (I.e., if the
    conclusion necessarily follows from the
    premises--theres no avoiding it!)
  • Invalid if the premises, whether true or false,
    cannot guarantee the truth of the conclusion
    (I.e., the conclusion doesnt necessarily
    follow--there are other ways to explain the
    outcome).

11
Caveats
  • To say an argument is valid, however, doesnt
    mean that it is sound or that its conclusion
    actually is true
  • Example All dogs are blue animals. All blue
    animals fly. So, all dogs fly.
  • The argument above is valid (if the premises were
    actually true, its conclusion must necessarily
    follow), but the conclusion is false and the
    argument is unsound because one or more of the
    premises is false.

12
Caveats, contd.
  • An argument can have true premises and a true
    conclusion and still be unsound if it reasons
    invalidly
  • Example All dogs are mammals. All terriers are
    mammals. So, all terriers are dogs.
  • All the propositions in the argument above are
    true, but the truth of the conclusion is only
    coincidental, and does not necessarily follow
    from the premises, because the reasoning is
    invalid (the form of the argument commits a
    reasoning error called undistributed
    middle--which well learn about later--but can
    be demonstrated intuitively by substituting
    cats for terriers and yielding the
    conclusion, All cats are dogs, clearly a false
    conclusion).

13
Argument soundness
  • Sound arguments
  • reason validly from
  • actually true premises to an
  • actually true conclusion.
  • Unsound arguments
  • reason invalidly from premises
  • whether true or false, or
  • validly from
  • untrue premises to conclusion.

14
In either case, soundness--or the lack
thereof--depends on
  • The validity (structure) of the reasoning,
  • Which is relatively easy to test, but may be
    tricky to grasp master, and/or
  • The truth (reliability) of the premises
  • Which may be difficult to test and master in an
    infinite universe of propositions.

15
Arguments v. propositions
  • Arguments are
  • Valid or invalid and
  • Sound or unsound but
  • Never true or false.
  • Propositions are
  • True or false but
  • Never valid/invalid or sound/unsound

16
The study of logic, furthermore
  • is concerned with validity
  • the form of arguments
  • as opposed to soundness
  • which involves the truth of propositions as
    well as validity

17
Language of Logic
  • To help us grasp more easily the concept of
    validity (the structure of an argument), as
    opposed to soundness (the truth of the individual
    propositions), and to be able to study validity
    better in isolation, logicians frequently cast
    arguments using
  • Nonsense words
  • All mimsies are borogroves . . .
  • Or symbols
  • All m are b . . . .
  • As you can see, in the cases above we arent
    inclined to think about the truth of the
    propositions, but rather only the structure of
    the argument.

18
Chapter 1.2 Argument forms
  • Commercial break
  • Some deductive arguments take very familiar
    forms.
  • Modus Ponens, aka Affirming the Antecedent
  • Modus Tollens, aka Denying the Antecedent
  • Hypothetical Syllogism
  • Disjunctive Syllogism
  • Constructive Dilemma

19
Forms method
  • If we can reduce an argument to one of the forms,
    its validity is very easy to establish.
  • Simplify
  • Substitute
  • Compare

20
Demonstrations
  • Modus Ponens
  • aka Affirming Antecedent
  • Modus Tollens
  • aka Denying Consequent
  • Fallacy of Denying Antecedent
  • Fallacy of Affirming Consequent

21
Chapters 1.3 1.4 Preview
  • Chapter 1.3
  • Informal refutation v. proof
  • Two common fallacious forms
  • Counterexample method
  • Categorical statements
  • Section 1.4
  • Induction (v. deduction)
  • Strength cogency

22
Chapter 1.3 Testing Deductive Arguments
  • What are two informal ways of testing deductive
    arguments?
  • Informal refutation
  • Informal proof

23
Chapter 1.3 Refutation Proof
  • What is refutation?
  • A demonstration that, even if premises are true,
    conclusion is false
  • Under what conditions will this be successful?
  • Only if argument is invalid
  • What is proof?
  • A demonstration of a sequence of individual,
    logically valid maneuvers from given premises to
    conclusion
  • Under what conditions will this be successful?
  • Only if argument is valid

24
Chapter 1.3 Proof
  • If an argument cannot be refuted, it may be valid
    and require proof.
  • If an argument can be proved, then it is valid
    and cannot be refuted (although it may still be
    unsound).
  • Proof requires a demonstration that, beginning
    with true premises, a true conclusion necessarily
    follows through a valid sequence of individual
    maneuvers.

25
Chapter 1.3 Two Common Fallacious Forms
  • What five common valid argument forms did we
    acquire in Chapter 1.2?
  • What two common fallacious forms did we learn
    about in Chapter 1.3?
  • How do we know that they are invalid?

26
Chapter 1.3 The Method of Refutation by
Counterexample (Analogous Reasoning)
  • What is a counterexample?
  • Why is it called a counterexample?
  • Literally, an analogous example of the argument
    that runs counter to the claim/conclusion
  • What is the counterexample method? How is
    refutation by counterexample done?
  • Fabricate an analogous scenario in which the
    premises are true but conclusion is false (the
    definition of invalidity).
  • Substitute variables for statements or terms.
  • Substitute new, logically sensitive statements or
    terms for variables, beginning with a clearly
    false conclusion.
  • Substitute new logically sensitive statements or
    terms for corresponding variables to yield
    clearly true premises.

27
Chapter 1.3 Refutation by counterexample
(analogous reasoning)
  • How does refutation by counterexample (analogous
    reasoning) work?
  • Because validity/invalidity is strictly a matter
    of argument form, if one can demonstrate that an
    identical form is invalid (I.e., true premises
    yielding false conclusion), then the original
    argument is invalid.
  • In what way is refutation by counterexample not
    always reliable? Why do you need to be careful
    when refuting by analogous reasoning?
  • You must craft an argument that is exactly
    identical (logically sensitive) in form--any
    deviation yields a false analogy that will not
    necessarily disprove the original argument.

28
Chapter 1.3 Categorical Statements
  • What is a statement?
  • What is a category?
  • What, then, is a categorical statement?
  • Can you cite an example of a categorical
    statement?
  • What makes it categorical?
  • What is the form of a categorical statement?
  • Can you enumerate the exhaustive list of
    categorical statement forms?
  • What is a term?
  • How does it differ from a statement?
  • We will devote chapters 5 6 to categorical
    logic.
  • Commercial break
  • Exercises

29
Chapter 1.4Induction (Strength Cogency)
  • To this point we have limited discussion to
    issues in deductive logic and only introduced the
    terms inductive logic (in Chapter 1.1).
  • How does induction differ from deduction?
  • What are the standards for deductive logic?
  • What are the standards for inductive logic?
  • What three examples of inductive argument types
    does our text adduce?
  • How does the idea of more or less apply to
    these types?
  • Exercises

30
Chapters 2.1 2.2 (2.3 EC) Preview
  • WARNING This chapter may seem squishy.
  • Chapter 2.1Arguments Non-arguments
  • Distinguishes arguments from other kinds of
    passages, including unsupported assertions, like
    reports, illustrations, explanations, and
    conditionals.
  • Chapter 2.2Well-Crafted Arguments
  • Explains how to simplify usually complicated
    everyday arguments into more assessable
    well-crafted arguments using six principles to
    charitably ferret out conclusions,
    sub-conclusions, explicit and implicit premises,
    standard form, unnecessary verbiage, and
    uniformity.
  • Chapter 2.3Argument Diagrams (EC)
  • For extra-credit, demonstrates the helpfully
    clarifying, but not absolutely essential, step of
    diagramming arguments schematically in order to
    grasp the relationship of assertions to their
    support.

31
Strategic observations
  • Unlike examples encountered so far in our text,
    arguments may be extensive and complicated.
  • There may be arguments supporting premises and
    premises for those arguments.
  • There may be more than one line of reasoning for
    a conclusion.
  • There may be more than one kind of reasoning.

32
Major tactical maneuvers
  1. Begin by asking yourself, What is the author
    trying to say? What is his/her point? This
    should yield the conclusion.
  2. Next, ask yourself, What are the main reasons
    she/he adduces for believing that? This should
    yield the explicit premises (evidences) of the
    argument.
  3. Finally, ask, What would one have to believe to
    accept what this author has said? This should
    yield the implicit premises (assumptions) of the
    argument.

33
Minor tactical considerations
  • In texts written in English, by writers in
    Western the tradition, most conclusions appear at
    the beginning (deductive approach) or at the end
    (inductive approach) or at the end of the
    beginning.
  • Explanations, examples, definitions, and attempts
    to preempt objections are almost never
    conclusions of an argument or even premises, in
    the strict sense.
  • Ancillary information, as in supporting
    documentation, notes, parenthetical asides are
    never conclusions and almost never premises, in
    the strict sense.
  • A conclusion will never appear in a subordinate
    clause.
  • Look for illatives.

34
Preview of 3.1 - 3.3
  • Problem areas
  • 3.1
  • Proposition
  • 3.2
  • Subtlety of definitional terms
  • 3.3
  • Largely unproblematic

35
Why care about definitions?
  • Define literally means to put limits around
    (fr. L. de about finis limit).
  • So, definition limits meanings.
  • Minimizes
  • vagueness (meanings shading off into other areas)
  • ambiguity (more than one meaning)
  • Minimizes complications of It all depends on
    what you mean by __________.

36
Chapter 3.1
  • Which of these concepts/terms were difficult?
  • Proposition
  • Cognitive meaning
  • Emotive force
  • For the concepts/terms that were confusing, can
    someone clarify it for us by defining and giving
    at least one example, or the range of examples,
    of it?
  • Why is it important to understand these
    concepts/terms?
  • Review problematic exercises

37
Chapter 3.2
  • Which of these concepts/terms were difficult?
  • Ambiguity versus vagueness
  • Extensional definition
  • Ostensive
  • Enumerative
  • Subclassical
  • Intensional definition
  • Lexical (genus differentia)
  • Stipulative
  • Precising
  • Theoretical
  • For the concepts/terms that were confusing, can
    someone clarify it for us by defining and giving
    at least one example, or the range of examples,
    of it?
  • Why is it important to understand these
    concepts/terms?
  • Review problematic exercises

38
Definition by extension
  • Pointing (a.k.a. ostensive)
  • actually showing one or more cases
  • Enumeration
  • listing individual examples
  • Subclass
  • listing types or categories
  • Exhaustive v. non-exhaustive?

39
Intensional definition
  • Stipulative personal, ad hoc, coined or not
  • Lexical positive, descriptive, dictionary-type,
    though not necessarily exclusively so
  • Precising minimizes vagueness ambiguity, to
    put a fine point on it, to distinguish precise
    meaning from popular meaning
  • Theoretical places a term in a particular
    context may give meaning to both term and
    context
  • Persuasive affective, subjective, emotive

40
Definition by intension
  • Synonym
  • Another word (lit. ??? similar ????? name)
  • Etymology
  • Linguistic genealogy (lit. ?????? true ????s
    account)
  • Test
  • Establishes criteria to be met
  • Genus difference/differentia
  • garden variety definition technique x is a y
    that . . . .

41
Chapter 3.2, contd.
  • Which of these concepts/terms were difficult?
  • Genus versus difference/differentia
  • Difiniendum versus difiniens
  • Counterexample
  • For the concepts/terms that were confusing, can
    someone clarify it for us by defining and giving
    at least one example, or the range of examples,
    of it?
  • Why is it important to understand these
    concepts/terms?
  • What are the criteria for producing a good
    definition?
  • Not to wide
  • Not to narrow
  • Not obscure, ambiguous, figurative
  • Not circular
  • Not negative if it can be positive
  • Not use unsuitable criteria to determine
    extension
  • Review problematic exercises

42
Ways of defining terms
  • definiendum word to be defined
  • definiens words doing the defining
  • extension set of objects in defined class
  • intension properties of objects in class

43
Rules
  • What is meant by essential characteristics
    (necessary sufficient)?
  • How can the definiens be too broad or narrow?
  • What is meant by circularity?
  • Cite examples of ambiguity, obscurity, figurative
    or emotive language.

44
Chapter 3.3
  • Which of these concepts/terms were difficult?
  • Equivocation versus merely verbal dispute
  • Persuasive definition
  • For the concepts/terms that were confusing, can
    someone clarify it for us by defining and giving
    at least one example, or the range of examples,
    of it?
  • Why is it important to understand these
    concepts/terms?
  • Review problematic exercises

45
Preview of Chapter 4Concepts that may present
difficulty
  • 4.1 Fallacies of Irrelevance
  • English/Latinate names
  • 4.2 Fallacies Involving Ambiguity
  • Amphiboly is sort of like equivocationbut its
    not the same.
  • Composition and division are similarbut theyre
    not the same.
  • 4.3 Fallacies Involving Unwarranted Assumptions
  • Begging the Question is not what it sounds
    like.

46
Chapter 4.1 Fallacies of Irrelevance
  • Which of these concepts/terms were difficult?
  • Fallacy
  • Formal
  • Informal
  • Of irrelevance
  • Ad Hominem (Against the Man)
  • Personal attack
  • Circumstantial
  • Tu Quoque
  • Straw Man
  • Ad Baculum (Appeal to Force)
  • Ad Populum (Appeal to the People)
  • Ad Misercordiam (Appeal to Pity)
  • Ad Ignorantiam (Appeal to Ignorance)
  • Ignoratio Elenchi (Red Herring or Missing the
    Point)
  • For the concepts/terms that were confusing, can
    someone clarify it for us by defining and giving
    at least one example, or the range of examples,
    of it?
  • Why is it important to understand these
    concepts/terms?
  • Review problematic exercises

47
Chapter 4.2 Fallacies of Ambiguity
  • Which of these concepts/terms were difficult?
  • Fallacy of Ambiguity
  • Equivocation
  • Amphiboly
  • Composition
  • Division
  • For the concepts/terms that were confusing, can
    someone clarify it for us by defining and giving
    at least one example, or the range of examples,
    of it?
  • Why is it important to understand these
    concepts/terms?
  • Review problematic exercises

48
Chapter 4.3 Fallacies of Unwarranted Assumption
  • Which of these concepts/terms were difficult?
  • Unwarranted Assumption
  • Begging the Question (Petitio Principii)
  • False Dilemma
  • Appeal to Unreliable Authority (Ad Verecundiam)
  • False Cause
  • Complex Question
  • For the concepts/terms that were confusing, can
    someone clarify it for us by defining and giving
    at least one example, or the range of examples,
    of it?
  • Why is it important to understand these
    concepts/terms?
  • Review problematic exercises

49
Chapter 5 Categorical Logic Statements
  • Chapter 5.1
  • Terminology is important we will be coming back
    to it again and again.
  • Translation is key grasp the meaning of
    stylistic variants and their translation
  • Chapter 5.2
  • Chapter 5.3
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