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Module 1
Lesson I Introduction to Logic
What is logic?
Logic comes from the word “logos”, which means “REASON”. It is concerned with
the methods and rules for correct thinking.
Logic is a formal study of mathematics; it is the study of mathematic reasoning and
proofs itself.
Logic is the science of reasoning, proof, thinking or inference. Logic allows us to analyze
a piece of deductive reasoning and determine whether it is correct or not – to determine if the
argument is valid or invalid.
Logic is an art. It is often called the art of arts because it develops and perfects the
intellect which all artists need in their work. Logic is a “techne” and it teaches how to make a
good argument.
Logic is the science that evaluates arguments.
Logic and Correct Thinking
It is correct when it conforms to a pattern or to rules.
Example:
A ruler is 12 inches long.
Pres. Arroyo is a ruler.
Therefore, Pres. Arroyo is 12 inches long.
Formal Logic
Concerned with the aspect of form which has something to do with the correctness
or sequence or the following of rules.
Material Logic
Concerned with the aspect of subject matter or content or truth of the
argument. Reasoning
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Reasoning is a special kind of thinking in which problems are solved, in which inference
takes place, that is, in which conclusion is drawn from premises. Our ability to use
reasoning is our most reliable and successful means for developing sound judgments around
the world around us.
What is the correct reasoning? If the premises do provide adequate grounds for accepting
the conclusion, if asserting the premises to be true does warrant asserting the conclusions
also to be true, then the reasoning is correct otherwise it is incorrect.
1. Simple apprehension is the mental operation by which the mind knows the meaning of
a term.
Simple apprehension is the first act of the intellect wherein by the acts of our senses
we mentally grasp a thing without affirming or denying anything about it.
Before the mind can proceed to determine the truth or falsity of anything it has first to
apprehend that something. This act of the mind is what is generally called simple
apprehension, which is an act whereby the minds understand the general meaning of
a thing without affirming or denying anything about it.
2. Judgment is the mental operation that affirms (or denies) something about
anything whatsoever
Judgment is the second act of the intellect wherein we join two understood terms
obtained or acquired in simple apprehension and deconstruct them either by
affirmation or by negation.
3. The inference or Reasoning is the mental operation that proves a judgment by using
supporting judgments.
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Reasoning is the third act of intellect wherein we draw conclusions from a given act
of validity.
Mental Act Mental Product External Sign Logical Issue
Concept – The representation of an object by the intellect through which man understands
or comprehends a thing.
It is an idea – starts with an outside reality and apprehended by the
senses. Kinds of Concept:
A.
1. First Intention: we understand what the thing is according to what it is in reality.
Ex. A dog is an animal.
2. Second Intention: we understand not only what the thing is according to what it is in
reality but also how it is in the mind
Ex. “Monte Vista” (Mountain View) is the name of my subdivision.
B.
1. Concrete concepts: expresses a “form” and a “subject”
Ex. The flower rose
2. Abstract concepts: has a “form” only, has intangible quality, that which cannot be
perceived by the senses
Ex. Beauty in a woman
C.
1. Absolute concepts: signifies the meaning of a concept. All definitions are absolute
concepts.
Ex. A triangle is a three-sided figure.
2. Connotative concepts: signifies the existence or possession of something.
Ex. Drummer boy
D.
1. Positive concepts: signifies the existence or possession of something.
Ex. happy
2. Negative concepts: signifies the absence of something.
Ex. Sad
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Exercise 1: Underline the simple subject of each proposition then classify according to the
four kinds of concepts.
1. Justice is a prerequisite of love.
2. Men are creatures of God.
3. Honesty is still the best policy.
4. Joy is Zeny’s friend.
5. “Freedom” is the name of our park.
Exercise 2: Underline the simple subject of each proposition then classify according to the
four kinds of concepts.
1. Love is a many-splendored thing.
2. “Love” is the theme of the homily.
3. The loving couple is a model to their children.
4. Hope is the opposite of despair.
5. “Hope” is the street where I live.
Lesson 2 Argument
An argument is a group of statements including one or more premises and one and
only one conclusion. It can also be defined as a claim defended with reasons.
It is important to note that the “argument” that we are referring to in this lesson is quite
different from our daily usage of the word ‘argument’. In the ordinary usage of the term, we
often find people get into physical conflicts that result in the exchange of blows among the
parties concerned; all in the name of arguments. The argument that we are referring to in logic
is quite different from that. The argument we are referring to is a type of inference.
An argument contains a set of one or more statements or propositions called
premises from which a certain other statement or proposition called conclusion is drawn
from.
Example: We infer the presence of fire when we see smoke.
We infer that an unmarried man is a bachelor.
1. In the first example, take note that the reason for the first inference is that in the majority
of the time we had seen smoke coming out from somewhere, we tend to believe that
there must have been a corresponding fire that started or generated the smoke even
though our claims at that point in time may not be absolutely true.
2. In the second example, we find the general populace inferring that every unmarried man
is a bachelor.
These kinds of claims are made based on some old evidence the people in question already
have about a state of affairs. From this point of view, the people in question have strong
reasons
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for someone to make such claims based on a new piece of evidence that in most cases may not
be true. Further analysis of the word “bachelor” shows that it is best suited for your men who are
desirous of getting into the union of marriage but are from reason, not yet signing the dotted
lines that commit them to their spouse when they say “I do.”
Two parts of arguments:
1. Premise part – statements that are regarded to provide the truth of the conclusion
2. Conclusion – the statement that is claimed to follow from others.
A statement is a declarative sentence that is either true or false, such as "The cat is on the
mat." Many sentences are not statements, such as "Close the door, please" and "How old are
you?"
A premise is a statement in an argument that provides reason or support for the
conclusion. There can be one or many premises in a single argument.
A conclusion is a statement in an argument that indicates of what the arguer is trying to
convince the reader/listener. What is the argument trying to prove? There can be only one
conclusion in a single argument.
Not all arguments are good arguments, so having identified an argument, the next task is
to evaluate it.
If you are asked to “critically evaluate” a philosopher’s argument you are being asked to
evaluate the whole structure NOT offer counter arguments against the conclusion (although
sometimes you are also being asked to do this).
Arguments can be described as “good” or “bad,” “weak” or “strong” according to a range
of criteria.
There are three fundamental terms that are used in evaluating arguments: Validity, Truth,
and Soundness.
ValidityAn argument is valid if and only if it is not possible for all of the premises to be true
and the conclusion false.
The conclusion follows from its premises.
The conclusion must be true if the premises are true.
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VALID INVALID
Truth
Although a deductive argument must be valid to be a good argument, validity is not enough.
One reason is that an argument can be valid even when all of the statements that it contains are
false.
This is a bad argument. Both of its premises are false. Nonetheless, this argument IS valid.
Soundness
When an argument is both valid and all its premises are true, then it said to be
sound. If it fails to meet either one, it is unsound.
A sound argument must have a true conclusion.
Example:
Claim: London is rainy.
Grounds: London is considered rainy.
Grounds: Tokyo gets 1,530 millimeters of rain a year.
Grounds: London gets 584 millimeters of rain a year.
Warrant: Average annual rainfall is a strong indicator of whether a city is
rainy. 2. Premises
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Any fact, assertion, probability or data inserted into an argument can be viewed as a
logical premise that makes your argument somewhat logical. This often takes the form of
“conclusion because premise.”
Example:
They were a bad employer because they didn’t treat the customer with respect.
3. Deductive
These are arguments that start with a more universal statement and conclude with a less
universal statement. Deductive arguments are constructed in such a way as to produce
conclusions that follow with certainty or with logical necessity from the premises. In a
valid deductive argument, the reasoning process between the premises and the
conclusion is so well-connected so as to guarantee or ensure the conclusion.
Example:
All Filipinos are Asians. (most universal)
All Cagayanos are Asians. (least universal)
Therefore, all Cagayanos are Asians. (least universal)
4. Inductive
These are arguments that start with a sufficient list of particular statements and end with
a probable universal statement as inferred from the premises. Inductive arguments are
constructed to produce conclusions that will probably follow form the premises. A strong
inductive argument offers enough evidence to make the conclusion likely (or highly
likely).
Example:
Mike, Paul, Bond, and Ton are Cagayanos.
Mike has a dark complexion.
Paul has a dark complexion.
Bong has a dark complexion.
Ton also has a dark complexion.
Therefore, Cagayanos probably have dark complexions.
The conclusion is only “probably” true.
• When the premises conclusively support the conclusions, the argument is deductively
valid.
• When the premises make the conclusions more or less probable, the argument is
inductive.
5. Extrapolation
Estimating the future based on current or historical observations.
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Example:
Premise: The economy has faced dozens of recessions and recovered each
time. Conclusion: The economy will recover again.
6. Analogy
Analogy, particularly metaphors, can be used to construct complex inductive
arguments by suggesting that two entities are essentially the same in some way.
Example:
Premise (metaphor): The Earth is a living organism.
Premise: Organisms can become ill and die.
Conclusion: The Earth can become ill and die.
7. Cold Logic
Cold logic is a logical argument that neglects human society, culture, values, and
emotions. This isn’t likely to get you anywhere with people. It is certainly possible for
logic to consider human factors. However, human factors are extremely complex. As a
result, it is common for logic embedded in processes, rules, practices, validations, and
algorithms to ignore human factors. This produces suboptimal results that fail to
account for social, legal, and business realities that are driven by human needs and
judgment.
Example:
Premise: Cats consume resources such as food.
Premise: Cats do not contribute to economic production.
Premise: It is a waste to spend resources without creating economic
value. Conclusion: Cats are a waste of resources.
8. Fallacy
Fallacies are flaws in logic. These can be complex and difficult to detect. As such, most
of the work of having a logical conversation or constructing a logical argument is
vetting logic for fallacies.
Example:
A: Our AI detected that Eric was cheating on the test.
B: Our AI scanned 1 million students.
C: Only one student was actually cheating.
D: Our AI has a 1% false positive rate.
Conclusion: There is only a 1% chance Eric is innocent.
The above conclusion suffers from the Prosecutor’s Fallacy. The AI scanned 1 million
students with a 1% false positive rate. This means that 10,000 students were falsely
identified as cheaters. Only one student actually cheated so that means there is a
9,999:1 chance that Eric is innocent or 99.99%..
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Kinds of Terms
A. According to quantity/extension:
1. Singular – refers to only one individual or thing. The indicators or signifiers of
singularity are
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3. Universal – or general. This refers to all individuals signified by the term. The
following indicates universality:
a. Universal affirmative quantifiers such as all, each, every, any,
everything, everyone, anything, anyone, whatever, whichever,
whenever, wherever, whoever.
b. Universal negative modifiers such as no, none, nothing, no one,
nobody, never
c. Indefinite articles ‘a’ and ‘an’ (when taken to refer to all denotations of
the term.
Exercise: Underline each simple subject and classify its quantity: S for singular, P
for particular, and U for universal.
1. I am a violinist’s daughter.
2. All the children are musicians.
3. Six of them are a string ensemble.
4. A brother is a trombone player.
5. Some bands are their competitors during the town fiesta.
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B. According to quality:
1. Affirmative or positive – expresses what is real, true, or essential of a thing, e.g.
existence, life, and optimism.
- predicate is affirmed of the subject
C. According to origin:
1. Immediate -terms formed through direct perception of things.
e.g. bag, pencil ball pen, yellow paper, cellphone
2. Mediate – terms formed indirectly, that is, through the mediation of other ideas
e.g. God, soul, spirit, universe
2. Abstract – referent is tangible or can be understood only by the mind and cannot be
perceived by the senses. e.g. freedom, democracy, faith, love, patriotism,
compassion
3. Logical – terms formulated to serve as linguistic device to aid learning. e.g. copula,
subject, predicate, velocity, momentum, phylum
4. Null or empty – terms that have no actual or real referents but is only imaginary. e.g.
unicorn, fairy, elf, dragon, batman, spiderman, superman, x-men
Kinds:
a. Intrinsic analogy used in technical terms and as definitions
b. Extrinsic analogy: used as a metaphor
Example: The heart of the forest
c. Analogy of proportionality: when the terms use is similar
d. Example: The stepmother is cruel.
The sea is cruel.
e. Analogy of attribution: attribute the term to its denotation
Example: I am drinking Coke.
Exercise:
Classify the underlined terms. Write U for Univocal, E for Equivocal, IA for Intrinsic
Analogy, EA for Extrinsic Analogy, AP for Analogy of Proportionality, AA for Analogy of
Attribution.
1. I am reading Rizal.
2. Gold is a precious metal. Lydia de Vega received a gold for 100m dash. 3. Politicians
speak of leveling the Smokey Mountain. Geneva Cruz is a member of the Smokey
Mountain.
4. Gonzaga is a tenor. Cabahug is a tenor.
5. I am using Colgate.
6. Father Sales and my father are friends.
7. The mouth of the river is clean.
8. The smiling sun is so brilliant.
9. We pass by Bridal’s Veil along Kennon Road.
10. Hitler is a man.
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F. According to relation
1. Compatible – terms that can coexist in a subject, that is, there is no logical obstacle
for them to be present in a subject at the same time.
e.g. tall and handsome, dark and rich, slowly and surely
2. Incompatible – terms that cannot coexist in a subject for they rule each other out. a.
Contradictory – two terms, one of which negates the other. Contradictories are so
mutually exclusive that there is no middle ground or third possibility between them.
e.g. edible – non-edible; being – nothing; life – lifeless
b. Contrary - terms that belong to the same class but deny each other. Between
these terms, there is/are middle ground/s. When one says that his girlfriend is
not black, it is not safe to conclude that she must be white, for she may be brown
or yellow. White and black therefore are contrary and not contradictory.
e.g. elated – depressed; hard – easy; happy – sad; genius – idiot
d. Correlative – two opposed terms wherein one cannot be understood without the
other. In their meaning, they imply reference to one another.
e.g. husband – wife; interviewer – interviewee; parent – child
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applies to members of the subjecttaken as a group, the supposition is collective
(suppositio collectiva).
Lesson 4 Definition
A definition is a statement which explains what a thing is. It is a statement that answers
the question “What is this thing?”
In giving the definition of the term, it is presupposed that the comprehension of the term
is understood, because the definition is based on its comprehension.
A real definition is one which explains and reveals the complete nature of a thing or object.
However, this is quite impossible since, we do not usually have a full grasp of the nature of
things. It, therefore, explains the normal acceptance of a simple description as definition of
an object.
Kinds of definition
1. Nominal – A definition that simply explains the meaning of a term or word. It may be the
root word or an equivalent term.
a. Synonym – an equivalent term or word, e.g. joy means happiness; President means
chief.
b. Etymology – The origin or root of the word, e.g. “Biology” came from the words
“bio” meaning “life” and “logos” meaning “study, thus “biology” means “study
of life”.
2. Real – A definition that explains what a thing or subject is. It explains the nature of the
object by giving its essential features or by simply describing the object.
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