INTRODUCTION TO

LOGIC/REASONING
SKILLS
 Basic Terminologies
 Argument :
 a group of statements which attempt to bring evidence
in support of a conclusion.
 a process of arriving at certain conclusion on the basis
of evidences (premises).
 Statements/Propositions:
 declarative sentence that has a truth value.
 any sentence that can be said either true or false.
Example:
• Ras Dashin is the largest mountain in Ethiopia (Tru)
• MeU is the oldest university in Ethiopia (False)
• Ethiopia is the cradle of human being (True)
 Claim:
 to say that sth is true (although it has not been proved/may
not convince a reasonable person).
 the assertion that something is true.
 Premise:
 part of an argument offered or stated as a reason or
evidence for the conclusion.
 justification and support provided by the arguer for
showing the truth and acceptability of the conclusion.
 Conclusion:
 part of an argument that is claimed to be drawn, followed
or inferred from the premises.
 the logical implication of the premises, main point or
inferential assertion of the argument.
• Generally, arguments are composed of two parts:
Premises & Conclusion.
• Premise: is a statement which provides reason
(evidence) for believing the truth of the conclusion.
• Conclusion: is also a statement which follows from the
others (premises) that is, a statement that is to be shown.
• The transition from the premises to conclusion, the
logical connection between them is the inference upon
which the argument relies.
Premise 1 Claimed
Premise 2 evidence Inference
Conclusion What is claimed
to follow from the evidence
• Since argument is composed of premises and
conclusion, in logic our central task is to
distinguish premise(s) from the conclusion.
• The first strategy to accomplish this task is by
using indicator words.
• Some of the typical conclusion indicator words
are the followings:
Thus For this reason Whence Implies that

Wherefore Hence So We may infer

Therefore Accordingly It follows that We may conclude

Consequently It must be that As a result

• Eg.1 – A federal gov’t usually possesses a
constitution, which guarantees power sharing
between the federal/central gov’t & those regional
or local gov’ts. This implies that distribution of
power is the basic feature of any federal
government.
• Eg. 2- The investigation of supernatural phenomena
lies outside the realm of science. Therefore, science
can neither prove nor disprove the existence of God.
• The statement before the word ‘implies that’ in eg. 1
& “Therefore” in eg. 2 is premises and the
statements that follows/contains ‘implies that’&
“Therefore” are the conclusion of the statement
given above.
• Some of the typical premise indicator words are
the followings:

Because Given that Owing to For this

reason

As indicated In that For the reason Seeing that

by that

In as much as For, as, For the reason May be

since inferred from
• Eg.1- The constitution of the state does not narrate
details of laws as it simply gives general guidelines
which all other laws are formulated accordingly.
• Eg.2- Expectant mothers should never use
recreational drugs, since the use of these drugs can
jeopardize the development of the fetus.
• The statement before the word ‘as’ is the
conclusion where as that which is after ‘as’ or
‘since’ is the premise of the above argument.
• However, indicator words are not always
guarantees to distinguish premise(s) from
conclusion mainly for two reasons:
1. There might be cases in which the argument lacks indicator
words.
2. Though they exist, they might have some other purposes
(explanations, illustrations…) other than showing
argumentation.
• Eg.1- Ethiopia has a long history in constitutional
traditions. And, since 1995 the country has guided by a
federal constitution.
# (here since is used as time indicator & the passage doesn’t
contain an argument for there is no inferential claim.)
 Inference:
 reasoning process/ movement from P to C; logical
connection or relationship b/n P & C.
 a process in which one proposition is derived from the
other (a conclusion from the premises).
• Therefore, the mere presence of indicator words
doesn’t necessarily or always guarantee the
existence of an argument in a passage.
• Eg.2- Since the 1995 constitution of Ethiopia
includes fundamental human & democratic rights
of the people, it is relatively better than all
constitutions which had been formulated before.
# (here since is used as a premise indicator so that
the passage contains inferential claim, which in
turn proves that it is an argument. )
• Hence, while encountering arguments in which
there are no indicators words, the reader or
listener of the argument should try to answer the
following:
 Which statement is claimed to follow from
others?
 What is the arguer trying to arrive at/prove? Or
 What is the main point of the passage?
• The answer to these questions points out to the
conclusion of an argument so that the rest will be
its premise(s).
• Eg. A politician who does not have the courage
to political life is not destined to the discipline.
Mohammed does not have any courage to it.
Mohammed is not destined to political life.
 Recognizing Arguments
• Some passages do not contain arguments.
• Any from of speech or passage is labeled as an
argument if and only if it fulfills the following two
conditions:
 A minimum of one statement must claim to provide
reason or evidence
 There must be a claim that something is followed
from the evidence.
• Premises refer to the statements claiming to provide
evidence, and conclusion refers to statements that
the evidence is claimed to imply or support.
• Is it necessary for the premises to be true to qualify an
argument?
• No, it is not mandatory that the premises provide actual
or genuine support to the conclusion or it is not
necessary for the premises actually support the
conclusion.
• But the premises must claim to provide evidences or
reasons: there must be claim that the evidences or
reasons support or imply something.
• In other word, the reasons or evidences presented are
not proved to be true, but the assertion that is true is
there.
• As a result, the premises may be either true or false. It
may, therefore, be either factual evidence or not.
• Generally, unlike inferential claim, factual claim is not
mandatory for a passage that contains an argument.
• Inferential claim is the reasoning process that
something supports or implies something. Thus, the
existence of reasoning process is mandatory to
consider a given passage or speech as an argument.
• An inferential relationship of an argument can be
expressed:
 Either explicitly through indicator (premise as well as
conclusion indicators) words.
Eg. Expectant mother should never use excessive
alcoholic drinks & drugs as these substances can
endanger the development of the fetus.
 Implicitly through understanding the inferential
relationship between premises & the conclusion.
Eg. Freedom of press is one of the most important
constitutionally guaranteed freedoms. Without it,
other freedoms would be immediately threatened.
Furthermore, it provides the fulcrum for the
development of new freedoms.
• Passages which contain warnings, advices, a
statement of beliefs & opinion, reports, expository
passages (elaborations), illustrations, loosely
associated statements and the like lack inferential
claim that they are not arguments passages.
 Passages Lacking Inferential Claim
 They are passages that lack reasoning process, in which the
potential premises don’t support the conclusion/the potential
conclusion doesn’t follow from the premises.
 Warnings:
• Be careful of the stairs-they are steep.
 Pieces of advice
• I advice you to improve your communication skills before you
graduate.
 Statements of belief & opinion
• In my opinion, abortion is a crime against humanity.
 Loosely associated statements
• Anything that a doctor does which requires cutting or injecting is
a procedure. Anything that a doctor does which requires thinking
or counseling is a ‘cognitive services’. Procedures pay much
better than cognitive services.
 Report:
 “At least 58 people have been killed in a landslide on
Saturday night at the Koshe landfill. A resident said
150 people were there at the time. A number of
makeshift houses are now buried under tons of waste.
A city spokeswoman told BBC news agency that many
children were among the dead. There are fears the
death toll could rise further.”
 An Expository Passage(elaborations):
 “The speed of reading, clearly, depends entirely upon
the reader. He may read as slowly or as rapidly as he
can or wishes to read. If he does not understand
something, he may stop and reread it, or go in search
of elucidation before continuing.”
 Illustrations:
 Mammals are vertebrate animals that nourish their
young with milk. For example, cats, horses, goats,
monkeys, and humans are mammals.
 Conditional Statements
 A sentence constructed through an “if….then…”
statement is a conditional statement.
 Statements that is following the “if” is called the
antecedent, and the one following the “then” is
called the consequent.
 Sometimes the word “then” is left out, and
occasionally the order of antecedent and consequent
is reversed.
 Conditional statements do not usually contain argument;
rather they signify the causal connection between the
antecedent and the consequent as:
 If antecedent, then consequent
 Consequent if antecedent
 If you study hard, then you will score a good grade or you
will score a good grade if you study hard.
However, conditional statements can be interpreted as an
argument if the connection between the two is as follows:
 A single conditional statement is not an argument.
 A conditional statement may serve as either the premises or
the conclusion or both of an argument.
 The inferential content of a conditional statement may be
re-expressed to form an argument.
Example
 If both Saturn & Uranus have rings, then Saturn has
rings.
 Both Saturn & Uranus have rings.
Therefore, Saturn has rings.
 “If the earth’s magnetic field disappears, then the
Vann Allen radiation belt will be dissolved. The earth
magnetic field is disappeared. Therefore, the Vann
Allen radiation belt will be dissolved.”
 If cigarette companies publish warning labels, then
smokers assume the risk of smoking. Cigarette
companies do publish warning labels. Therefore,
smokers assume the risk of smoking.
 Conditional statements are especially important in logic
because they express the relationship between necessary
& sufficient conditions.
 “X” is said to be a sufficient condition for “Y” whenever
the occurrence of “X” is all that is needed for the
occurrence of “Y”.
 If you are stabbed by knife, a scare will appear in your
body.
“being stabbed by a knife is a sufficient condition for the
occurrence of scare”
 However, being stabbed by a knife is not a necessary
condition for the occurrence of scare because many other
things may cause scare.
“being a drake is a sufficient condition for being a male”
 “X” is said to be the necessary condition for “Y”
whenever “Y” can not occur without the
occurrence of “X”.
 Air is a necessary condition for life.
 It is a necessary condition because one cannot
think of life without air. But it is not a sufficient
condition since there are other necessary
conditions.
 Being a male is a necessary condition for being
a drake.
 Lesson Three: Types of Arguments
 Arguments can be divided into two groups:
1. Deductive Arguments
2. Inductive Arguments
 The basis of division, among others, includes the
following points:
 the kind of connection existed between the
premises & the conclusion.
 the strength of the inferential claim or the degree
of the strength of the reasoning process.
 Deductive Arguments
• Deductive arguments are arguments, which their
premises guarantee the conclusion in the sense that
if we assume that the premises are true, the
conclusion must be true.
• The conclusion follow from the premise with the
force of certainty or with logical necessity.
• The premises provide conclusive evidence for the
truth of its conclusion.
• The connection b/n the premises and the conclusion
is a matter of necessity or certainity (the conclusion
cannot be otherwise(false) if its premises are true).
Example:
All human beings are mortal. Here the premise support the
Kebede is a human being. conclusion with certainity
Therefore, Kebede is mortal.
• Abebe is a member of the Christian Society. All members of
the Christian Society are conservatives. Therefore, it
necessarily follows that Abebe is a conservative.
• In both case, the conclusion is inferred with logical necessity
from the evidences or premises.  
• Here the notion of necessity refers to absolute necessity. For
instance, although it is very, very likely that the sun will rise
tomorrow, it is not necessary that it do so. Only very
probable. On the other hand, the proposition that 2+2 = 4 is a
necessary proposition. There is absolutely no other way
around it.
 Inductive Arguments
• Inductive arguments are those in which if we assume that
the premises are true, the conclusion will probably be
true.
• The premises provide only probablistic support to the
conclusion.
• There is a probable connection b/n the premises and the
conclusion, not necessity.
• The premises suggest the conclusion but not to guarantee
it.
• The conclusion contains information, which is not
contained in the premises.
• The premises support the conclusion not conclusively but
with some degree of probability.
• In inductive argument we might have sufficient
evidences, but we cannot be absolutely sure about
the truth of the conclusion.
• But, this does not mean the conclusion is wrong or
unacceptable; it could be accepted only probably or
plausibly.
Example:
 The majority of Ethiopian University students are
seriously concerned about employment opportunity.
Rahma is a university student. Therefore, Rahma is
seriously concerned about employment opportunity.
 Socrates is mortal. Plato is mortal. Aristotle is
mortal. Therefore, all human beings are mortal.
 Recognizing/Distinguishing Deductive and
Inductive Arguments
There are three methods/criterias, which are
important to distinguish Deductive arguments
from Inductive arguments. These are:
 The occurrence/existence of special indicator
words;
 The nature of inferential link/the actual strength
of the inferential claim between premises and
conclusion (the force with which the conclusion is asserted)
 The character or form of argumentation the
speaker/arguer uses
 The occurrence of special indicator words
• There are key words or phrases that belong either to
inductive or deductive arguments.
 Inductive argument: “probably or improbable”,
“plausible or implausible”, “likely or unlikely”,
“reasonable to conclude”, and so on.
 Deductive argument: necessarily, absolutely,
definitely, certainly, surely and so forth.
 However, the mere occurrence of indicator word is
not so decisive.
 The best way to tell whether an argument is
deductive or inductive, however, is by assessing the
force with which the conclusion is asserted.
 The nature of inferential link between premises
and conclusion
• Whether the connection b/n premises & conclusion is a
matter of “necessity” or “probability”
• If the conclusion is strictly or logically followed from the
premises, the argument will be deductive (strong
inferential claim) but if the conclusion is probably
followed from the premises, the argument is inductive
(weak inferential claim).
Examples:
 All my friends are students. Dula is my friend. Therefore,
Dula is a student.
 Most of my friends are students. Akmal is my friend.
Therefore, Akmal is a student.
 The Character/form of Argumentation the Arguer
uses
Typical Deductive Argument Forms
Purely arithmetic or geometric (mathematics), or argument
from definition, or syllogistic argument.
1. Argument Based on Mathematics/Purely
Arithmetic/Geometric Reasoning.
• The conclusion depends on some purely mathematical
computation or measurement.
• The accuracy in numerical or geometrical expressions provide
guarantee to reach a certain conclusion.
• “Abebe placed three oranges and five bananas into a paper bag;
so, the bag contained a total of eight pieces of fruit”.
• The sum of the interior angles of a triangle is 180 0 . In triangle
1, angle A measures 900 & angle B measures 500. It follows
that angle C measures 400.
• Statistical reasoning is mathematical but it is not deductive
because statistical conclusions are formed from data
(evidences) which are gathered through random sampling
techniques.
2. Argument from Definition
• The conclusion is arrived by defining the fundamental
/basic word in the premise or when the premise already
defines the truth of the conclusion.
 “Since she had engaged in sexual intercourse for payment,
John’s wife must be a prostitute.”
 Almaz was talking gibberish in her sleep. So, what Almaz
was talking is Something unclear.
 God is omniscient. Hence, he knows everything.
 Abraham is a bachelor it follows that he is unmarried man.
 3. Syllogistic Argument (Syllogism)
• Naturally, there may be one, two, ten or one
hundred statements (premises) offering evidence
in support of the conclusion of an argument.
• However, a syllogistic argument have exactly two
premises and one conclusion.
• There are three types of syllogistic arguments.
These are:
 Categorical syllogism
 Hypothetical syllogism
 Disjunctive syllogism
• Categorical Syllogism: is a syllogistic argument
formed by categorical statements, that each of
the statements begins with one of the words
“all,” “no” or “some.”
• Example
All humans are mammals. All X are Y
All mammals are animals. All Y are Z
Therefore, all humans are animals. Therefore, all X are Z.

All lasers are optical devices. All X are Y

Some lasers are surgical instruments. Some X are Z
So, some optical devices are surgical instruments. So, some Y are Z.
 
 All medical Doctors are graduates of medical schools.
Some medical doctors are unethical persons.
Therefore, some unethical persons are graduates of medical
schools.
 Hypothetical Syllogism: is a deductive argument, which is
basically accompanied by an "if.........then........." or conditional
statements.
If X, then Y.
If Y, then Z.
So if X, then Z.
“If we eat a variety of food items, then we would be healthy.

If we are healthy, then we would be productive.

So if we eat variety of food items, then we would be
productive.“
 If quartz scratches glass, then quartz is harder than glass.
Quartz scratches glass. Therefore, quartz is harder than
glass.
 Disjunctive Syllogism: is a syllogistic argument having
a disjunctive statement (i.e., an “either… or ….”
statement) for one of its premises.
Either Abebe is died or alive. Either X or Y.
Abebe is not died . Not X.
Therefore, Abebe is alive. Therefore, Y.
 Either you study hard or you won't pass freshman. You
didn't Study hard. Therefore, you won't pass freshman.
 Either Italy or Ethiopia won the military incident of
Adwa. Italy did not win the military incident of Adwa.
Therefore, Ethiopia won the military incident of Adwa.
4. Argument that Moves from General Claims to
Particular (Individual) Realities
 As a trend of argument, a deductive argument proceeds
from the general to the particular.
 The premises of a deductive argument usually deal
with all members of a class, and the conclusion makes
an assertion about one or more members of the class.
 “All articles stated in the FDRE constitution are
ratified by the constitutional Assembly. Article 39 is
one of the articles in the FDRE constitution. As a
result, Article 39 is ratified by the constitutional
assembly.“
 But this fact should not be used as criteria for
distinguishing induction from deduction.
• Because, as a matter of fact there are deductive arguments that
proceed from the general to the general, or from the particular
to the particular, or even from the particular to the general.
• For example, the following argument (example 1) proceeds from
the particular to the general but it is a deductive arguments the
conclusion follows the premises with the force of necessity.
3 is a prime number.
5 is a prime number.
7 is a prime number.
Therefore, all odd numbers between 2 and 8 are prime numbers.
• On the other hand, there is an inductive argument that proceeds
from the general to the particular:
• “All automobile cars imported into Ethiopia have been white in
color. Therefore, the automobile car that Getachew is intending
to import will also be white in color.”
 Typical Inductive Argument Forms
• In inductive arguments the conclusion "goes beyond" the
information contained in the premises.
1. Argument Based on Prediction: is when somebody
concludes about the future based on some known event in the
present or past, and the conclusion moves to a relative future
period.
• The premise provides evidence for the occurrence or
happening of the conclusion but it may happen or not.
 The former gov‘ts of Ethiopia were dictators. Most probably,
the future gov‘t of Ethiopia will also be dictator.
 For a billion years and so the sun has been rising in the east
and setting in the west. It follows that in any possible future
time the sun will does the same as it has been doing in the past.
2. Argument from Analogy: is drawing a conclusion from the
similarity or analogy between two things or state of affairs.
• It means two or more things are similar in some respect and it
is expecting further similar features in other respect to draw
conclusion.
 Tamrat and Ayele are friends. They use to go library, class and
cafeteria all the time together. Tamrat likes to watch DSTV. It
must be the case that Ayele also likes to watch DSTV.
 The Encyclopedia Britannica has an article on Symbiosis.The
Encyclopedia Americana, like the Britannica, is an excellent
work. Therefore, the Americana probably also has an article on
Symbiosis.
 China was a backward & economically poor country 30 years
before as Ethiopia is today. Therefore, it is inevitable that
Ethiopia will reach the same level of economic development as
China is today after 30 years.
3. Argument from Authority: the conclusion rests upon a
statement made by some presumed authority or witness.
 A prosecutor in the court of law might argue that as Mr. Y, an
eye witness, testified to the court under oath, he saw the
defendant killed the victim and left the area quickly. Hence,
based on the testimony of Mr. Y the defendant must be found
guilty of the crime.
 ("Ato Kebede committed the murder because an eyewitness
testified to that effect upon oath.")
 According to Dr. Dawit, who is a medical doctor at Black lion
hospital, Ethiopian economy is growing rapidly regardless of
the global crises of 2008/9. Therefore, Ethiopian economy is
growing fast as per the acount of Dr. Dawit.
• Because the eyewitness & the doctor could be mistaken,
biased, or lying, such arguments are essentially probabilistic.
4. An Inductive Generalization (argument based on
statistics): is drawing a conclusion about the whole group
based on the knowledge of selected samples.
• Inductive generalization is a belief that the whole
members have the characteristics of the selected ones.
 In a basket containing 100 balls, I selected 5 balls that
were found to be red. Therefore, all 100 balls are red.
 There are 60 students in this classroom. I have completed
evaluating the answer sheets of 8 students and all of them
scored 85% and above. It must be the case that almost all
students of this classroom must be smart.
 Three oranges selected from a certain container were
especially tasty and juicy, it follows that all the oranges
from that container are especially tasty and juicy.
5. Argument Based on Signs: is an argument that proceeds
from the knowledge of a certain sign to knowledge of the
thing or situation that the sign symbolized.
• It is drawing or inferring a conclusion by using signs as a
premise.
 ”This package material has a cautionary mark that
indicates that there are fragile materials in it. Hence, the
package has to be hold carefully; fragile materials must
be there.
 “A Red Cross flag is flowing over the top of that
building. It suggests that there is a Red Cross medical
center in that building.”
 Because the sign might be misplaced or in error, the
conclusion is only probable.
6. Argument Based on Causal Inference
(Causation): is argument that proceeds from the
knowledge of a cause to knowledge of the effect, or,
conversely, from knowledge of an effect to
knowledge of a cause.
• Causes as premises
• Effects as conclusion
 The cloud is becoming darker and the thunder is
roaming. So, let us go home quickly, the rainfall is
inevitable.
 While crossing the road I see blood that the ground
is shaded with blood. Therefore it must be that a
man was run over by a car.
 Evaluating Deductive and Inductive Arguments

o Evaluating argument and passing final judgment is the

fundamental task of logic.

o Validity, soundness, strength & cogency are the central

concepts for evaluating arguments.

o Deductive arguments evaluated as valid/invalid or

sound/unsound.

o Inductive arguments can be evaluated as strong/ weak or

cogent/uncogent.
 The evaluation of every argument centres on the
evaluation of :
o Inferential claim: a claim that something follows from
the alleged evidence.
o Factual claim: a claim that the premises present
genuine evidence, or are true.
o The most important of the two is the inferential claim,
because if the premises fail to support the conclusion
(if the reasoning is bad), an argument is worthless.
 Evaluating Deductive Arguments
o Initially a deductive argument can be divided into two forms:
Valid & Invalid.
A valid deductive argument:
o If the premises are assumed to be true, the conclusion must be
true.
o “If you accept the premises as true, then you must accept the
conclusion as true as well”.
o The conclusion necessarily follows from the premises.
o Its premises provide an absolute and complete support for its
conclusion.
o However, it does not mean that the premises and
conclusion of valid argument are in fact true; rather
if the premises are assumed true, it is necessary
for the conclusion to be true.
“Addis Ababa is in Ethiopia. Ethiopia is in Africa.
Therefore, Addis Ababa is in Africa.”
All European countries are developed. Ethiopia
belongs to European continent. So, Ethiopia is a
developed country.
o Any deductive argument that is not valid is invalid.

 An invalid deductive argument

o If the premises are assumed true, it is possible for
the conclusion to be false.
o The conclusion does not follow with strict necessity
from the premises.
o Even if the premises are true, the conclusion may
turn out to be either true or false.
All roses are flowers All X are Y

All flowers are plants All Y are Z

Therefore, all roses are plants. So, X are Z

All roses are plants All X are Y

All flowers are plants All Z are Y
Therefore, all flowers are roses All Z are X.

All billionaries are rich

Bill Gates is rich
So, Bill Gates is billionaires.
o There is no middle ground b/n valid & invalid.
o The actual truth and falsity of the premise and the
conclusion is not always decisive in evaluating arguments.
o As false premises & a false conclusion does not prevent an
argument from being valid, the occurrence of true premises
and a true conclusion does not guarantee validity, except an
argument with true premises and a false conclusion which is
always invalid.
o In evaluating deductive arguments what matters is the
inferential claim.
 Valid Invalid

T. Pre. & All cows are mammals All billionaries are rich
T. con. All mammals are animals Bill Gates is rich
So, all cows are animals. So, Bill Gates is billionaires.

T. Pre. & All dogs are animals

None exist
F. Con. All cats are animals
Hence, all dogs are cats.

F. Pre. & All wines are soft drinks All wines are soft drinks
T. Con. Coca cola is a wine Guder is soft drink
So, Coca cola is a soft drink So, Guder is a wine

F . Pre. & All Americans are Europeans All Americans are Europeans
F. Con. All Ethiopians are Americans All Ethiopian are Europeans
So, all Ethiopians are Europeans So, all Ethiopians are Americans
o In short the following table will make the variety
of possible combinations of validity & truth clear.

Premises Conclusion Validity

T T ?

T F Invalid

F T ?

F F ?
 Soundness of Deductive Arguments
 Soundness takes into account both factors-
o Factual claim and inferential claim (truth value and
validity) for evaluating arguments.
o The reasoning process (valid) and all the premises
are factually true.
o If any of these two conditions is missing, the
argument is unsound.
 Sound Argument = Valid argument + True premises.
All mammals are animals.
All humans are mammals. Valid + T.pre.

Therefore, all humans are animals.

All humans are mortal
All Ethipians are humans. Valid + T.pre.
Therefore, all Ethiopians are mortal
o The conclusion follows the premises with strict necessity =
the argument is valid. (+)
o Its premises are all true.
o Therefore, the above deductively valid arguments are sound.
o On the other hand, a deductively Unsound argument falls into

one of the following three categories:

Valid but at least one false premise.

Invalid but all its premises are true.

Invalid and has at least one false premise.

All Ethiopians are Europeans.
Tilahun Gessesse is an Ethiopian.
Therefore, Tilahun Gessesse is an European.
All animals are mammals
All birds are animals
Therefore, all birds are mammals
 Evaluating Inductive Arguments
o If the premises are assumed to be true, then based on this
assumption it is only probable that the conclusion is true.
o Inductive arguments can be evaluated as Strong,weak,
cogent and uncogent.
 A strong inductive argument
o It is unlikely, though possible, that its conclusion is false
while its premises are true.
o If the premises are true, its conclusion has a higher
probability of being true in any strong argument.
o The connection b/n the premises and the conclusion is a
strong one (although not as strong as valid arguments).
o Even if we assume the premises are true, in inductive
argument, there is still a slight possiblity that the
conclusion can turn to be false.
 A weak inductive argument
o If the premises are assumed true, then based on that
assumption it is not probable that the conclusion is true.
o It is not likely that if its premises are true, then its conclusion is true.

o Argument cannot be said almost valid /invalid, more/ less invalid

because validity does not admit of degree.

o Strength and weakness, unlike validity and invalidity, admit of

degree.

o So that we can have either stronger or weaker arguments when we

compare to other arguments.

o Any inductive argument is not absolutely weak nor absolutely

strong.
o The incorporation of additional premises into an
inductive argument will tend to strengthen or weaken it.
o Like validity and invalidity, strength and weakness are
only indirectly related to the truth and falsity.
o The central question in determining strength &
weakness of an argument is not the truth and falsity of
the premises and conclusion but whether the conclusion
would probably be true if the premises are assumed true.
 Examples of inductive arguments:
o This barrel contains one hundred apples. Three apples
selected at random were found to be ripe. Therefore,
probably all one hundred apples are ripe.
o This barrel contains one hundred apples. Eighty apples
selected at random were found to be ripe. Therefore,
probably all one hundred apples are ripe.
o We can weaken the 2nd argument by adding "One
unripe apple that had been found earlier was removed"
o The following table will make the variety of
possible combination of strength and truth clear.
Premise Conclusion Strength

True Probably True ?

True Probably False Weak

False Probably True ?

False Probably False ?

Premise Strong Weak

True Premises All previous American presidents A few American president were
& were men. Therefore, probably federalists. Therefore, probably the
Prob. True the next American president will next American president will be a
conclusion be a man. man.

True Premises None exist A few American presidents were

& federalists. Therefore, probably the
Prob. False next American presidents will be a
conclusion federalist.

False Premises All previous American presidents A few American presidents were
& were television debaters. Libertarians. Therefore, probably
Prob. True Therefore, probably the next the next American President will
conclusion American president will be a be a television debater.
television debater.
False Premises All previous American presidents A few American president were
& were women. Therefore, probably libertarians. Therefore, probably
Prob. False the next American president will the next American president will be
conclusion be a women. libertarian.
 Cogent/uncogent
o A cogent argument is an inductive argument that is
strong and has all true premises; if either condition
is missing the argument is uncogent.
o Uncogent argument is an inductive argument that is
weak, has one or more false premises, or both.

Cogent argument = Strong argument + All true

premises
 CHAPTER TWO
LOGIC AND LANGUAGE:
MEANING AND
DEFINITIONS
 The Relationship between Logic and Language

o LOGIC is concerned with correct or good reasoning.

o There is no logically correct argument, without
correct use of the meaning of words and proper
application of the grammar structure of a language.
o Thus, committing linguistic errors in arguments leads
to committing logical mistakes.
 Functions of Language: Emotive and Cognitive
Functions
o Individuals use language in many different ways, for

various purposes in order to meet their various needs.

o Thus, functions of language are unlimited.

o Among other things, language is used to ask questions,

tell jokes, tell stories, tell lies, give directions, sing

songs, form hypotheses, issue commands, launch verbal

assaults, greet someone and so on.

 For our purpose, three linguistic functions are particularly

important:

Emotive/expressive function: to express or evoke feelings.

 The death penalty is a cruel and inhuman form of punishment in

which hapless prisoners are dragged from their cells and

summarily slaughtered only to satiate the blood lust of a vengeful

public.

 Since it provide subjective, partial, irrational, and unfair judgment

based on one's emotions and feelings this functions of language is

not relevant to logic.

Cognitive/informative functions: to convey information.

 The death penalty, which is legal in thirty-six states, has

been carried out most often in Georgia; however, since 1977
Texas holds the record for the greatest number of executions.
 The first written constitution of Ethiopia was formulated in
1931; however, the first federal constitution is effected since
1995.
 Cognitive function of language enables individuals to deny
or affirm the truth of statements. Therefore, they can serve
as premises or conclusion of different arguments.
Directive functions: to command or order others.

 Drive carefully please! Remember that if you

negligently cause damage you will be thrown to
jail.
 Since directive function of language uses
sentences that are not statements, it is irrelevant
to logic (eg. Don't close that door, study hard,
Give me that book).
o Emotively charged statements usually have both cognitive

and emotive meanings.

o It is logically advisable to distinguish the two and emphasis

should be given to the former since logic is mainly concerned

with it.

o The cognitive meanings of emotively charged statements

have to do with value claims.

o For example, the statement about the death penalty asserts the

value claim that the death penalty is wrong or immoral.

o Emotively charged sentences consist expressions of

prejudices and feelings rather than rational, justifiable and

factual information about an event or the subject concerned.
o Thus, we have to separate the value claims from the emotive

meaning and treat these claims as separate statements.

o For instance, the above statement gives psychological

momentum to claim that death penalty is immoral/wrong.

o As a result, readers and listeners are inclined to swallow the

value claim whole without any evidence.

o Emotively charged statements are usually familiar with

disciplines such as: advertizing, military, politics and

other related fields.

o Advertizing: the objective of all advertizing is to convey

the message that the product being advertized is good.

 Niyala Insurance is " like a good neighbor" ... a good

neighbor is a person who is always there in time of need,

which is exactly what everyone wants from an insurance.

o Language associated with military ventures often calls forth negative

emotions. To counteract this effect, military spokespersons are trained

to describe those ventures in terms that evoke a neutral response.

 Human targets.... soft targets/ soft ordnance

 Dropping bombs... servicing a site

 Bombers.... force packages

 A concentration camp... pacification centre

 A retreat ... an adjustment on the front

 A war ... a police action.

 Meaning of Terms: Intentional and Extensional Meanings

o Arguments are composed of statements, statements are

made up of words, words have meanings, and meanings are

conveyed through definitions.

o The basic units of any ordinary language are words.

However, for our purpose, our main concern is with terms.

o A term is any word or arrangement of words that may

serve as the subject of a statement.

o Terms consist of proper names (e.g. Abebe),
common names (e.g. animal), and descriptive
phrases(e.g. first president of the United States).
Proper names Common Descriptive phrases
names
Napoleon Animal author of Hamlet

Addis Ababa State officers in the Swiss Navy

The United States house blue things

Senate person those who study hard

o On the other hand, verbs, adjectives, adverbs,
prepositions, conjunctions, and the like cannot be
considered as terms since they cannot serve as
subjects of statements.
o For instance, words like however, argue, fairly,
controversial cannot be taken as terms.
o However, when words have been mentioned or
quoted, they usually serve as subjects so that
they can be treated as terms.
o Example: 1. "Carefully" is a nine letter word.

2. We should drive carefully.

o In the first example carefully is used as subject,
so that it is term and in the second example used
as an adverb so that it can never be a term.
o Words are usually considered to be symbols, and
the entities they symbolize are usually called
meanings.
o Terms, being made up of words, are also
symbols, but the meanings they symbolize are of
two kinds:
Intentional and

Extensional.
o The intentional meaning consists of the
qualities, features, properties, essential
characteristics or attributes that the term
connotes. Example:
 Philosopher means a person who is critical,
reasonable, logical, and analytical and who
questions the foundation of everything.
o The Extensional meaning consists of the
members of the class that the term denotes.

Example
 Philosopher means such as Socrates, Plato,
Aristotle, Hegel, Frederick & so forth.
o These two kinds of meaning will provide the
basis for the definitional techniques.
o The intentional meaning is usually termed as intension or

connotation, and the extensional meaning is known as the

extension or denotation.
o For example, the intentional meaning of the terms “human

being” contains attributes of being rational, social, &

moral as well as political animal and its extensional
meaning consists of all human beings in the universe.
o Intentional meaning is usually exposed to subjective

application.
o Individuals‘ positive or negative inclinations or attitudes towards

the subject to be defined restricts us from having similar

connotative meaning about it. Example:

o Abortion is an act, which is illegal, immoral, and inhuman and it

clearly violates the fundamental human rights of an infant baby.

o Abortion is an act which is performed by responsible medical

professionals so as to save the endangered life of the mother.

o Thus, one can understand two contradictory meanings given to

the term abortion.

o The denotation of a term also typically remains the

same from person to person, but it may change with the

passage of time.
o The denotation of “currently living cat,” for example, is

constantly fluctuating as some cats die and others born.

o The denotation of the term “cat,” on the other hand, is

presumably constant because it denotes all cats, past,

present, and future.
 Relationship Between Intentional and
Extensional Meanings
When we increase the intentional meaning of a
term, we are decreasing its extensional meaning
and when we decrease the intentional meaning of
a term, we are increasing its extensional meaning.

Increasing Intention/ Decreasing Extension

Sara, Female, Young, Rational Animal, Animal

Decreasing Intention/ Increasing Extension

o Increasing Intention = Animal, Rational Animal,

Young, Female, Sara.

o Increasing Extension = Sara, Female, Young,

Rational Animal, Animal.

o Decreasing Intention = Sara, Female, Young,

Rational Animal, Animal.

o Decreasing Extension = Animal, Rational Animal,

Young, Female, Sara.

Mammal, animal, tiger, feline(cat family).

Increasing intension:
Increasing extension:
Decreasing intension:
Decreasing extension:
This implies that the extensional meaning of a term is
conversely or indirectly related with its intentional
meaning.

• Increasing extension mean denoting more classes or

members than the preceding terms in a series. And the
converse/opposite is decreasing intention.

• Increasing intention mean to be more specific or

attributing more about the term than its preceding and the
converse is decreasing intention.
o Intentional definition of a given term usually
determines its extensional definition:
o Because, if we know the attributes or qualities
of a given term, then we can easily identify the
class or categories.
o But, extensional definition of a term cannot
determine, but can suggest, its intentional
meaning.
 Terms of Empty Extension
o There are some forms of reality which do not exist in the

present day or have no class members/extensional meanings.

o This things include myths, extincted creatures(like

Dinosaur, Dragon), mythical stories, current Apartheid rule

in South Africa, Current king of Ethiopia, god of war,
Unicorn, dodo bird, God, Satan and the like are terms of
with empty extension since such entities do not have
extensional meanings.
o These terms were existing entities at once in the past, but

today all such entities have no existence.

o Thus, these terms today have what is known as empty

extension, but they do not have empty intention.

o Individual's knowledge of these things is based on their

attributes or essential features that is known in the past.

o Therefore, the intentional meaning of these terms remains

the same through the course of time, whereas the

extensional meanings of these terms change through time.
 Definitions and Their Purposes
• Philosophers perceive the purpose of definitions as to
understand the essential forms of the object to be defined.

• As to logicians, definitions are usually destined to assign

meaning to words or groups of words.

• Definition is composed of two essential parts:

Definiendum: the word which is supposed to be defined.

Definiens : a word or a group of word which does the

defining.
• There are five kinds of definition based on their
respective purposes. These are:

1. Stipulative Definitions
o A stipulative definition provides meaning to words
for the first time either through coining/ creating new
words or giving a new meanings to an old words.
o The prime function of stipulative definition includes:
 To substitute a more complex expression by simple
one.
 To provide meaning for new phenomenon or
development.
 To setup secret codes in areas of military.
o Stipulative definitions are completely arbitrary
assignments of meanings to words, they cannot have
any truth-value so that they can not be asserted as true
or false.
Examples:

 “Tigon” means “offspring of male tiger and female

lion”
 “Liger” means “offspring of male lion and female tiger”

 Logphobia means fear of taking logic course

 Operation Sun Set… the code name given to the

military campaign to free Badime.
 “cyberspace,” “e-mail,” “browser,” “hardware,”
“software,” “download,” “web site,” “mouse,”
 2. Lexical Definitions
o Usually a dictionary definition since it is used to
report the meaning that a word already has in a
language.
o Lexical definition can be evaluated as true or false
with reference to the actual usage of the word.
o A good lexical definition avoid or resist
ambiguous meanings.
o Ambiguity : a word is said to be ambiguous
when it contains two or more clearly distinct
meanings in that particular situations.
o Example: Words such as light, sound, mad,
right, race and bank are ambiguous.
o Bank can mean a financial institution or the
slope bordering river, right can mean freedom,
liberty, correct and so forth.
 3. Précising Definitions
o A definition which provides a more precise, specific, exact
and restricting meaning to a term.
o The purpose of this definition is to avoid or reduce the
vagueness of a word.
o Vagueness: a word is said to be vague if there are
borderline cases in which it is impossible to tell whether
the word applies to them.
o Words such as fresh, rich, love, happiness, normal and poor
are vague.
o A word is vague when it is impossible or difficult to
tell whether this word applies to specific cases or not.
o This words lack attributes like exactness and
preciseness. Examples:
o “Poor”- means having a daily income of less than one
dollar.
o “Antique”- means at least 100 years old.
o Here, the term poor and antique defined exactly and
precisely.
 4. Theoretical Definitions
o A theoretical definition provides a theoretical meaning to
the word.
o Like science (light, force, mass, acceleration, etc) many
terms in philosophy such as substance, idea, God, form,
change, good, mind, justice… have been given theoretical
definitions.
o Theoretical definitions, like stipulative definitions, can
never be evaluated as true or false; however, they can be
considered as more interesting or fruitful.
Examples:

 ‘Heat’ means the energy associated with the

random motion of the molecules of a substance.”
 “Atom” means indivisible unit of a matter having
perceptible qualities.
 “Sin” means an intentional violation of the law
of God.
 5. Persuasive Definitions
o A persuasive definition assigns meaning to different

terms using emotively charged words or phrases to

create a favorable or unfavorable attitude towards what
is defined by the definiens … condemning or blessing.
o Persuasive definition attributed to the synthesis of

stipulative, lexical & theoretical definitions backed by

emotional appeals to persuade listeners or readers over
a certain issue.
o The purpose of persuasive definition is to influence the attitude

of the reader or listeners as an instrument of persuasion.

o Persuasive definition can be evaluated as true or false though it

is not its primary mission (effectiveness as instruments of

persuasion).

 “Abortion” means the ruthless murdering of innocent human

beings.

 “Abortion” means a safe and established surgical procedure

whereby a woman is relieved of an unwanted burden.

 Definitional Techniques
• There are various techniques, which are important to
produce definitions.
• These techniques may be classified in terms of the
two kinds of meaning: intentional and extensional
meaning.
• Extensional (Denotative) Definition
• Extensional definition provides meaning to a term by
listing examples to the term which is being defined.
• Indicating or listing the members of the class that the
definiendum denotes:
 Pointing physically to them
 By naming them individually
 By naming them in groups
 Demonstrative (ostensive) Definition

• The word ostensive comes from the Latin “Ostender”, which

means to show.
• Ostensive(demonstrative) definition assigns meaning to a term
being defined by pointing physically to the object.
o It is the most primitive form of all definitions.

o Demonstrative definitions may be either partial or

complete depending on whether all or only some of the
members of the subject to be defined are pointed.
 Examples:

 “Tree” means this & this.

 “Pen” means this (by pointing to the pen)

 “House” means this (using a picture demonstrating a

house).
Enumerative Definition
o Enumerative definition assigns meanings to the
object naming them individually or in groups.
o It provides complete or partial list of objects or
entities that a term symbolizes.
o Enumerative definition carried out through
listing some or all of the objects, which the later
is logically preferable.
 Examples:
 “Politician” means some one like Nelson
Mandela, Barrack Obama or Robert Mugabe.
 “Planet” means such as Mercury, Venus, Earth,
Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune, Uranus, or Pluto.
 Scientist means such as Albert Einstein, Isaac
Newton, Charles Darwin, Galileo Galilee and so
forth.
Definition by Sub-class
o Definition by sub class assigns a meaning to a
term naming those subgroups or sub classes of
the class denoted by the term which is being
defined.
o Like enumerative definition, it is carried out by
listing either all or some of the sub-class denoted
by the term being defined.
 Examples:
 Reptile means such as snake, crocodiles, & tortoise.
 Fruit means something such as an apple, peach, pear,
or banana.
 World means such as Africa, South America, North
America, Asia, Europe, Oceania/Australia, Antarctica.
o Here terms ( reptile, fruit, world) defined by listing the
sub groups or sub classes of the term which is being
defined.
 Intentional (Connotative) Definitions

• A connotative definition provides a meaning to a

term by describing the essential characteristics or
features possessed by the term being defined.
• There are four ways that might be used to
indicate the attributes or essential feature that
different words connote.
Synonymous Definition
o If a single word is found having the same intentional
with the word to be defined, synonymous definition is
highly appropriate way of assigning intentional meaning.
o In a synonymous definition the definiens is a
synonymous of the word being defined.
 Examples:

 “Physician “ means doctor

 “observe” means see

Etymological Definition
o Etymological definition assigns meanings to a word
through showing its root, origin or ancestors in both
its own language as well as other languages.
o This definition gives the word’s original meaning,
which other meanings can be derived.
 “Philosophy” is a word derived from the Greek philo,
which means love, & Sophia, which means wisdom.
An Operational Definition
o It gives meaning to a word through setting
experimental procedure; which will be applied to it.
o Operational definition, therefore, carried out by
performing the actions, operations, activities &
procedures that the word implies and when these
actions, operations, and activities performed serve
as its meaning.
 Examples:

 A knife is “sharp” if it produces a thin scratch

when very gently drawn over one’s thumbnail.
 A liquid is “viscous” if one feels resistance when
drawing one’s hand through it.
 A solution is an “acid” if and only if this
solution turns blue litmus paper red when dipped
into it.
Definition by Genus and Differentia
o It assigns a meaning to a term by identifying a
genus term and one or more difference words.
o In logic, “genus” refers to a larger class, and
“species” refers to a smaller sub class of the genus.
o And “differentia” or difference is the essential
character or attributes that distinguish the specious
term from the genus term.
• Examples:
Species Difference Genus
Triangle … means a three-sided plane figure
Father …means a male parent/person
Mother…means a female parent/person
Wife…means married women
Husband…means married man
Son…means a male offspring
Daughter…means a female offspring