Arguments
- Arguments are the reasons that support a conclusion.
- It is formulated so that the conclusion is deduced from the Premises.
- Erroneous arguments are called fallacies in logic.
- It is also a form of communication that tries to persuade its audience to adopt a particular position about a topic.
- It has two main components:
- Premises, Statements, or propositions.
- Conclusion
Deductive Argument
- In this, the Conclusion is guaranteed to be true if the premises are true.
- The conclusion cannot be more general than the premises.
- It starts with a general statement and ends with logical conclusions derived from statements.
- It may be either valid or invalid.
- If the argument is valid, it is a valid deduction and if the premise is true, the conclusion must be true.
- A Valid argument cannot have true premises and a false conclusion.
Example-
1. Consider the premises given below
All mobile phones use rare earth metal.
Rare earth metal is very cheap.
Conclusion- Therefore, mobile phones are cheap.
- Here, the conclusion is Mobile phones are cheap and it is derived from the premises.
- If we assume the given premies to be true, then this conclusion will also be true.
- This means it is a valid argument. But is not a sound argument because Rare metals are very expensive.
- In reality, Rare earth metals are very expensive, but we have to move according to the premises and then derive a conclusion.
- The validity of the argument depends solely on whether the argument has a valid logical form or not.
Example-
2. Consider the Premises given below
All professors have a Ph.D.
Suresh has a Ph.D.
Conclusion: Suresh is a professor.
- Now, this is an invalid argument because the conclusion is not derived from the premises.
- There is no guarantee that Suresh is a professor based on the premises.
Example-
3. Consider the Premises given below
Some students are JRFs.
Some JRFs are professors.
Conclusion: Some students are professors.
- Here also, this is an invalid argument as this conclusion cannot be logically derived from this given premises.
Inductive Argument
- In this, generalized decisions are made after observing, or witnessing repeated instances of something.
- This argument can be strong and weak.
- It is the opposite of the deductive.
- In inductive general statements are combined to infer a general conclusion.
- Example- "The coin I pulled from the bag is a 5 rupee coin. A third coin from the bag is also 5 rupee coin. Therefore, all the coins in the bag are 5 rupee coin.
Analogous arguments
- These are basically the argument which has an analogy.
- Analogy signifies a similar relationship.
- To argue by analogy is to argue that because two things are similar, what is true of one is also true of the other.
- Example: She is as blind as a bat.
- Life is like chocolate.
- Finding that lost dog will be like finding a needle in a haystack.
Circular argument or Transcendental argument
- This argument ends at the same place where it started.
- Example: Violent video games cause teens to be violent because violent teens play violent video games.
- You must obey the law because it's illegal to break the law.
Question for practice
1. Premises – All cats have long tails.
Shanku is a Cat.
Conclusion- Therefore, Shanku has tails.
What type of argument is it?
A. Deductive
B. Inductive
C. Circular
D. Abductive
2. Statement- “Poverty is a problem for society because it creates trouble for people throughout the community.”
What type of argument is it?
A. Deductive
B. Inductive
C. Circular
D. Abductive
Answer in the comments.
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