Critical Reasoning

Critical Reasoning Stephen Watson swatson@bond.edu.au Office in HSS 4234 Consultations tba

Critical Reasoning Text R.J. Fogelin & W. Sinnott-Armstrong (2005) 7th edition Understanding Arguments: an introduction to informal logic

Critical Reasoning Further Reading Cederblom, J. & D. W. Paulsen (c2001) Critical Reasoning Copi, I. & C. Cohen, (1994), Introduction to Logic

Critical Reasoning Assessment Mid-semester Assignment: 35% Quiz #1  (week 7) 30% Quiz #2  (week 12) 35%

Critical Reasoning Goals improve critical reading skills required for undergraduate study improve academic writing skills and the clear presentation of your ideas assist in the imaginative aspects of thinking necessary to good problem solving.

Critical Reasoning Lectures First part of 3 hour block is lectures Feel free to ask for clarifications during lectures

Critical Reasoning Tutorials second part of 3 hour block is a tutorial Questions from the text or elsewhere will be discussed. Discussions will be on the material in the lecture just given – so make sure you’re understanding things at the time

Aspects of Language

No man is an Island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee. John Donne

Language and Argument An argument is the giving of reasons for or against a claim.  Arguing is a linguistic activity

Language and Convention The language we use to communicate ideas, beliefs, etc. is a matter of convention.      semantic conventions: words acquire their meaning by convention syntactic conventions: grammar, is conventional

Language and Convention Language is, however, not arbitrary .      Communication depends on shared linguistic conventions The truth or falsity of information communicated is generally not dependent on conventions

Levels of Language Language can be used to perform many functions to convey or request information to bring things about to elicit a response in one's audience

Linguistic Acts Language contains many conventions. Two have already been noted semantic conventions syntactic conventions When an utterance satisfies these two conventions we can be said to have performed a linguistic act

Linguistic Acts Indicative mood (for a statement of fact) "He is running." Interrogative mood (for a question) "Is he running?" Imperative mood (for a command) "Run!" Expressive mood (for a desire or wish) "Ah, to be running now!"

Speech Acts A linguistic act is one level at which speech acts can be described ... but there is another level. The level of illocutionary acts

Performatives Certain kinds of utterances — performatives — bring something about, rather than merely describe A marriage celebrant says "You are now man and wife"

Explicit Performatives The ‘Thereby’ Test Utterance U expresses an explicit performative just in case it: (i) is first-person singular present indicative (ii) yields a true statement when plugged into the pattern In saying "I ..." I thereby ... .

Explicit Performatives Examples "I now declare you man and wife" "I congratulate you" The saying is a kind of doing

Kinds of Speech Acts Performative utterances are used for (linguistic acts and) speech acts One and the same linguistic act can do a variety of things — perform a number of speech acts

Kinds of Speech Acts Examples "Is there any pizza left?" "Yes" "Do you promise to pay me back?"  "Yes" "Do you swear to tell the truth?"       "Yes" "Do you refuse to leave?"                 "Yes" The linguistic act of saying "Yes" is used To state something To promise To take an oath To refuse

Kinds of Speech Acts An illocutionary act is the act that an utterance effects.It is what is done in making the utterance. E.G. stating, promising, swearing, refusing

Kinds of Speech Acts Different kinds of speech acts are named by the different verbs that occur in explicit performatives In saying "I promise ..." I thereby promise ... So promising is a kind of speech act In saying "I refuse to ..." I thereby refuse to ... So refusing is a kind of speech act. These verbs are called performative verbs

Kinds of Speech Acts Not all speech acts are named by performative verbs The speech act of insulting is not. 'Insult' is not a performative verb. (Just try the thereby-test to see.).

Making Statements One important kind of speech act is to make statements that are true or false the speech act of asserting, or stating, or describing

Speech act rules To perform a particular speech act certain conventions may need to be met The speaker might need to occupy a special position Special words, gestures or formatting may be required There may be presupposed facts A particular response might be required

Speech act rules Though a speech act may have occurred, it can be insincere Certain feelings or beliefs are expected by the speaker When you promise someone by saying "I promise" the speech act of     promising occurs, however it can be defective if the speaker is not sincere

Perlocutionary Acts The act of causing an effect in an audience by means of language is a perlocutionary act "Look out for the tiger snake!" I perform the linguistic act of saying something meaningful I perform the illocutionary act of warning you I perform the perlocutionary act of putting you on guard

Conversational Rules Linguistic acts can be used to perform perlocutionary acts because of assumed conventions or rules I say “The house is on fire” (linguistic act) and you are alerted (perlocutionary act) because we assume People generally aim at truth in cooperative conversation People generally have  evidence for claims they make

Conversational Rules Cooperative conversations are governed by such rules Hence, cooperative conversations are situations in which conversational acts are commonly performed

Conversational Implicature Because cooperative conversation is governed by rules we can draw conclusions from what someone says without them having to be explicitly stated "Where does Jo live? " "In Brisbane somewhere " Cooperative Rule:  Be as informative as possible. Implicature: I don't know exactly where Jo lives

Conversational Implicature B conversationally implicated by linguistic act A just in case: (i)  B is not explicitly stated by A (ii)  B could be false given A (iii) yet B could explain why A is uttered in a cooperative conversation

Conversational Implicature Example "No one has spoken to Phil all evening" Conclude C: “No one likes Phil”; but It is not explicitly stated, and It could be false. But It explains why the remark was made

Conversational Implicature Example "No one has spoken to Phil all evening" Conclude C: “No one likes Phil”; but It is not explicitly stated, and It could be false. But It explains why the remark was made So C is an implicature

Conversational Implicature Compare "No one has spoken to Phil all evening" Conclude D: “Phil hasn't had a conversation all evening” D is logically implied (it can’t be false)