When it comes to philosophy topics, we need to definitely talk about logic. We’re not talking about simply “true/false” thinking, either. Logic is something that goes beyond that. Logic is basically the study of all of the core principles of proper reasoning. Basically, we need to look at the right way to reason things out, because it forms the bedrock of all conversations. Think about it: when’s the last time you wanted to get someone to truly believe your point of view? It probably wasn’t that long ago, right? Well, logic forms the basis of persuasive conversation. We use logic in order to get people to see our point of view. Debates happen all the time, and if we want to be seen as the “winner”, we have to be able to reason properly. Logic is how we do such a thing.
When we discuss the core of logic, what we are ultimately discussing is whether an argument is actually valid. For example:
If Mary is an artist, then Mary is poor.
Mary is an artist.
Hence, Mary is poor.
At this point, weíre still talking about structure rather than actual validity (obviously, there are some really wealthy artists, and some really poor ones!), but logic gets into these structures quite often. This type of structure is referred to as “modus ponens”, one of the simplest structures available. If X, then Y. X. Hence (or therefore), Y.
As you can see, we can take these structures and figure out how valid arguments are once we have some type of framework. Logic is necessary to study alongside philosophy, and the two topics actually go together.
What are some other structures that you see every day, even in popular media? As you study philosophy, these structures will become even more apparent.