PHIN101 – Logical and Critical thinking

HANDOUT (to be used exclusively by the class)

Prepared by Monico David Botor

Terms, Propositions, and Arguments

● Traditionally, the study of logic was divided into three parts according to the three acts of
the mind.

1st Act of Mind 2nd Act of Mind 3rd Act of Mind

Name of Act Understanding Judgment Reasoning

Mental Product Term Proposition/ Sentence Argument/

Syllogism
Structural Parts None/ Inadequate Subject Term and Premise and
Structure Predicate Term Conclusion

Example of “Man,” “Mortal” “Socrates is a man” “All men are

Each mortal. And
Socrates is a
man. Thus
Socrates is
mortal.”

Terms
● The external expressions of our ideas or concepts.
● In ordinary parlance, they are called words.
● Terms may be spoken or written.
● Division of Terms
○ Singular
■ A term is singular if it stands for one individual or group and designates
that individual or group definitely.
■ Proper Names, Superlatives, demonstrative pronouns, collective nouns.
○ Particular
■ A term is particular if it stands for an indeterminately designated portion
of its absolute extension.
■ stands for more than one, but not clearly for all, of the individuals or
groups to which it can be applied. “Some men,” “some horses,” “three
boys,” “several girls, “a few apples,” and “most Americans” are particular.
○ Universal
■ A term is universal if it stands for each of the subjects to which it can be
applied‑that is, if it stands for each one of an unlimited class of subjects.
Propositions
● statements which are considered as the basic elements of reasoning. They are
statements which possess truth-value and thus, may be said to be true or false.
● Basic Characteristics of propositions:
○ It is expressed in the indicative mood.
○ It is expressed in the present tense.
○ It is answerable by yes or no (has truth-value).
○ For the categorical proposition, it must follow the Subject-copula-predicate (S c
P) pattern.
● Kinds of Propositions
○ Categorical Proposition – defined as a proposition in which a predicate (P) is
affirmed or denied of a subject (S). It is one that expresses a positive or negative
judgment in an absolute manner.
The law is the guardian of reason and justice.
Tomorrow is Thursday.
■ A, E, I, O

  Affirmative Negative
Universal or Singular A E
Particular I O
■ Square of Opposition
● One of the schemes to determine the truth or falsity of a
proposition.
● Chart which represents logical flow or relationships between
categorical propositions.

● Contradictories
 ● Contraries

● Subcontraries

● Subalterns

*T = True
*F = False
*?/D = Uncertain, Doubtful

● Hypothetical Proposition – is one that does not express an absolute judgment but
a qualified one.
If you study hard, you will become a nurse.
● Hypothetical proposition can further be classified into:
○ Conditional - is one which expresses a relationship of dependence
between an antecedent judgment and a consequent judgment.
 The part of the judgment introduced by the word “if” is called the
antecedent while the consequent may be introduced by the word
“then.” To be correct, there must be real dependence by the
consequent on the antecedent.
■ If p then q
○ Conjunctive - a compound statement that is connected by the
word, “and.”
■ P∧Q
○ Disjunctive - is one which expresses alternatives, all of which
cannot be together true, nor together false, but only one is true
with the exclusion of the rest. To be correct, the alternatives taken
together, must not all be true or false
■ P∨Q
● Other basic concepts in Logic
○ Consistency - A set of statements is consistent when and only when it is
logically possible for all of them to be true in the same situation (Lau,
p.60).
○ Inconsistent statements are also known as contraries.
● Entailment
○ A set of statements P1...Pn entails (or implies) a statement Q if and only if
Q follows logically from P1... Pn. In other words, if P1... Pn are all true,
then Q must also be true. (Ibid., p. 61)
○ P entails Q, but not the other way round.
○ When P entails Q, we say that Q is a logical consequence of P.
○ In symbolic notation, it is P ⇒ Q.
○ A set of true statements cannot have false consequences.
○ A set of false statements can have true consequences.
● Logical Equivalence
○ If P ⇒ Q and Q ⇒ P, then P and Q are logically equivalent (p.62)
○ When two statements are logically equivalent, they necessarily have the
same truth value—it is not possible for one of them to be true and the
other one to be false.
○ In formal logic,P ⇔ Q means that P and Q are logically equivalent.
○ If P ⇔ Q, then Q ⇔ P.
○ Every statement is logically equivalent to itself.
● Logical Connectives
○ A logical term that can be attached to statements to form more complex
statements (p. 63)
■ Ex. “and” “but” “if…then” “if and only if”
● Negation
○ Negation of a statement P is any statement whose truth-value is the
opposite of P (p.64)
○ In formal logic, the negation of P can be symbolized as ~P, ¬P, or not-P
● The biconditional
 ○ P iff Q.
○ P when and only when Q.
○ P↔Q(in formal logic)
○ p↔q is equal to (p→q)∧(q→p)
Arguments
● Consists of at least two statements. The conclusion, which is claimed to follow from the
premises, called the support.
● Involves at least one inference from the premises to the conclusion.
● Involves a claim of dependence by one statement on another. The following statement
from the other must be shown to be something true.
● Usually, in an argument, a conclusion follows from two premises. However, it is also
possible to have a kind of argument with only one premise and a conclusion:
○ The law is concerned with giving justice as the common good for all people in the
society. Therefore, it is the recourse of all who have grievances against the
government
○ An example of an argument with two premises:
Those who study logic possess high intellectual capacity.
Students in Ateneo study logic.
Therefore, Ateneans possess high intellectual capacity.
● Premises and Conclusion
○ These terms denote a function in the argument. By itself, a proposition cannot be
a premise or a conclusion. Within the context of an argument, however, a
proposition may be a premise or a conclusion.
○ The premise is what serves as the evidence while the conclusion is what is
supposed to follow from the evidence.
○ It must be noted that the arrangement of statements in the argument does not
mean that the premise always precedes the conclusion. The order in which they
are stated is not really significant from the logical point of view. What is important
is that there is a clear connection from the statement that follows and the
statements that support what follows.
○ In ordinary syllogisms, an argument is more easily seen if written in argument
form. The premises are written first and separated by a line at the conclusion, at
the bottom. Every proposition in the argument is numbered.
Ex:

 
Politicians, being our leaders, are morally conscientious, as all leaders are.
 
   
(1) Premise All leaders are morally conscientious.
(2) Premise But politicians are leaders.
__________ ______________________
Conclusion Therefore, politicians are morally conscientious.
 ○ Indicators:

● Diagramming arguments
○ Single Support

○ Joint Support

○ Independent Support

○ Extended Argument
References:
Hernandez, M.R.F. Critical Thinking for College Students. n.d.
Lau, J.Y.F. An Introduction to Critical Thinking and Creativity.New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons,
Inc., 2011.
Moore, Brooke Noel and Parker Richard. Critical Thinking. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2014.
https://philosophy.hku.hk/think/critical/