DISCRETE STRUCTURES

Lesson 3

Percival A. Fernandez
Contradiction
 In classical logic, a contradiction consists of a logical
incompatibility between two or more propositions.

 It occurs when the propositions, taken together, yield

two conclusions which form the logical, usually opposite
inversions of each other.
Contradiction
 It is the relationship between two propositions when they cannot
both be true (although both may be false). Thus, we can make
an immediate inference that if one is true, the other must be false.

 A Contradiction is a statement that is always false regardless of

the truth values of the individual logical variables
Contradiction
 By extension, outside of classical logic, one can speak of
contradictions between actions when one presumes that their
motives contradict each other.

 Illustrating a general tendency in applied logic, Aristotle's law of

noncontradiction states that "One cannot say of something that it
is and that it is not in the same respect and at the same time.“
Contradiction
 The law holds for the A and E propositions of the Aristotelian square of
opposition.

 For example, the A proposition 'every man is honest' and the E proposition
'no man is honest' cannot both be true at the same time, since no one can be
honest and not honest at the same time.
 But both can be false, if some men are honest, and some men are not. For if
some men are honest, the proposition 'no man is honest' is false. And if
some men are not honest, the proposition 'every man is honest' is false also.
Contradiction
This diagram shows the
contradictory relationships
between categorical
propositions in the square of
opposition of Aristotelian logic.
Contradiction
Example :

 R /\ (¬R)

 ¬(¬(P/\Q) ⇔(¬P)\/(¬Q))

 The negation of any tautology is a contradiction , and the negation

of any contradiction is a tautology.
Contradiction
Contradiction
A contradiction is never true.
It is false for every value of the variable.
x3 x5
x  x
35
3 can never = 5

This is a contradiction; it has no solution.

Contradiction – Example Exercise
Contradiction - Answer
Contradiction
 In common usage we sometimes say that two statements are contradictory.
 By this we mean that their conjunction is a contradiction: they cannot both
be true.
For example
 The statements p\/q and (¬p)(¬q) are contradictory, since we've just shown
that their conjunction is a contradiction.
 In other words, no matter what the truth values of p and q, it is never true
that both p\/q and (¬p)(¬q) are true at the same time. (Can you see why this
is so from the meaning of p \/ q?)
Contingency
 In common usage we sometimes say that two statements are contradictory.
 By this we mean that their conjunction is a contradiction: they cannot both
be true.
For example
 The statements p\/q and (¬p)(¬q) are contradictory, since we've just shown
that their conjunction is a contradiction.
 In other words, no matter what the truth values of p and q, it is never true
that both p\/q and (¬p)(¬q) are true at the same time. (Can you see why this
is so from the meaning of p \/ q?)