Introduction to Logic

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

What distinguishes good arguments from bad ones? Logic is the study of arguments, and answering this question is one of its chief aims. In this logic course, we begin by studying informal logical reasoning — the main patterns used in everyday arguments. But the majority of the course will focus on formal logic — the study of the abstract form of deductive arguments using symbolization. You will learn (1) how to translate sentences from ordinary English into sentences of symbolic logic, and (2) how to construct valid arguments using basic rules of inference. Once we have a handle on how to symbolize English sentences and how to construct valid proofs, we will move on to the first-order predicate calculus, in which simple propositions will be further analyzed in terms of their parts. We will learn how to prove arguments in a rule-governed system. This course satisfies the logic requirement for philosophy majors.