HON 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Logical Reasoning
Document Summary
Since the meaning of a term can be interpreted differently, the validity of an argument should not depend on extra assumptions about the meanings of terms. Valid arguments are ones whose pattern/structure all by itself assures that the premises are properly related to the conclusion. Here is the revised definition: an argument is valid, if and only if, the argument follows a pattern that makes it impossible for any other argument having the same pattern to have true premises and a false conclusion. We often make assumptions even when the argument does not explicitly state our assumptions (such as all college students are graduates). This needs to be a premise in the argument or else the argument is incomplete. Therefore, we need to explicitly state all the information relevant to the conclusion of the argument, rather than some portion of it. An argument is ill-formed, if and only if, it"s neither valid nor cogent.
