Arguments

Question 1

Arguments

What is an Argument?

What are Arguments good for?

How can this be done?

Answer 1

What is an Argument?
- A sequence of propositions of which a part supports the last one.

What are Arguments good for?
- To show that a certain claim is reasonable?

How can this be done?
- Proposition (conclusion) has to be true if other propositions (premises) are true
- If one agrees with the premisses, its reasonable that one would agree with the conclusion.

Question 2

Arguments

What is a Proposition?

Answer 2

May be true or false

Question 3

Arguments

Analysis of Arguments

Answer 3

Determination of the structure
- What are the premises, what is the conclusion?

Transform the argument to the „standard form“
- all the premises and the conclusion are explicitly stated
- all the premises are stated separately from each other at the beginning of the argument
- the conclusion is stated at the end of the argument

Question 4

Arguments

What makes a good Argument?

Answer 4

Validity
- If the conclusion follows from the premises

Soundness
- Iff the argument is valid and its premises are true