tailieunhanh - A Concise Introduction To Logic

Logic may be defined as the science that evaluates arguments. All of us encounter arguments in our day-to-day experience. We read them in books and newspapers, hear them on television, and formulate them when communicating with friends and associates. The aim of logic is to develop a system of methods and principles that we may use as criteria for evaluating the arguments of others and as guides in constructing arguments of our own. Among the benefits to be expected from the study of logic is an increase in confidence that we are making sense when we criticize the arguments of others and when we advance arguments of. | À 1 Basic Concepts Arguments Premises and Conclusions Logic may be defined as the science that evaluates arguments. All of us encounter arguments in our day-to-day experience. We read them in books and newspapers hear them on television and formulate them when communicating with friends and associates. The aim of logic is to develop a system of methods and principles that we may use as criteria for evaluating the arguments of others and as guides in constructing arguments of our own. Among the benefits to be expected from the study of logic is an increase in confidence that we are making sense when we criticize the arguments of others and when we advance arguments of our own. An argument as it occurs in logic is a group of statements one or more of which the premises are claimed to provide support for or reasons to believe one of the others the conclusion . All arguments may be placed in one of two basic groups those in which the premises really do support the conclusion and those in which they do not even though they are claimed to. The former are said to be good arguments at least to that extent the latter bad arguments. The purpose of logic as the science that evaluates arguments is thus to develop methods and techniques that allow us to distinguish good arguments from bad. As is apparent from the above definition the term argument has a very specific meaning in logic. It does not mean for example a mere verbal fight as one might have with one s parent spouse or friend. Let us examine the features of this definition in greater detail. First of all an argument is a group of statements. A statement is a sentence that is either true or false in other words typically a declarative sentence or a sentence component that could stand as a declarative sentence. The following sentences are statements Aluminum is attacked by hydrochloric acid. Broccoli is a good source of vitamin A. Argentina is located in North America. Napoleon prevailed at Waterloo. Rembrandt was a