Philosophy 251
Dr. Christopher Byrne
Critical Thinking
What is an argument? How do arguments work? What makes some arguments better than others? This course will equip students to recognize and analyze arguments as they occur in a variety of contexts such as media editorials, speeches, textbooks, argumentative essays, and philosophical texts. To accomplish this, we will study the components of good arguments and techniques for criticizing and constructing arguments. Students will also be introduced to propositional logic. Prerequisite: normally at least one semester of successful university study. Three credits.
2019 Winter Term – A7/8/9 blocks
Course Outline (PDF)
Reading List (PDF)
Basic Concepts of Formal Logic
(PDF)
Definitions (PDF)
Fallacies (PDF)
Problem of Induction (PDF)
Syllogistic Logic (PDF)
Kinds of
Proposition (PDF)