Lecture 4:

Question 1

Vagueness

Answer 1

• refers to a word or phrase that is uncertain in terms of what it includes or excludes
• has practical importance in areas such as law, where it can determine the outcome of a case (i.e. whether a driving behaviour is reckless)
• can be intentional, when a person wants to avoid a precise answer
• vagueness occurs in varying degrees and cannot be entirely eliminated, but it is a valuable concept in everyday use

Question 2

what is an example of vagueness?

Answer 2

• driving too fast, this can be fixed by saying driving well over the speed limit

Question 3

ambiguity

Answer 3

• refers to a word, phrase or sentence that has multiple meanings
• can lead to humorous misunderstandings, like in headlines like “Miners refuse to work after death”
• proper definitions are important

Question 4

what is an example of ambiguity

Answer 4

” jessica is renting her house”
“my work here is finished”

Question 5

types of ambiguity

Answer 5

1: semantic ambiguity
2: grouping ambiguity
3: syntactic ambiguity

Question 6

semantic ambiguity

Answer 6

• when a claim contains an ambiguous word or phrase that leads to multiple interpretations. it can be resolved by substituting a less ambiguous word or phrase

Question 7

grouping ambiguity

Answer 7

• is a type of semantic ambiguity that occurs when it’s unclear if a word refers to a group collectively or to individual members of the group

Question 8

syntactic ambiguity

Answer 8

• occurs when a claim has two or more interpretations due to its structure, or syntax. Rewriting is the key to eliminating syntactic ambiguity, when can result from unclear use of logical words like “or” and “ and “

Question 9

generality

Answer 9

• a concept related to vagueness and ambiguity
• refers to lack of specificity, meaning the more different kinds of things a word applies to, them ore general it is
• combination of both vague and ambiguous

Question 10

defining terms

Answer 10

• terms is crucial in critical thinking
• goes beyond a straightforward meaning

Question 11

in question of the concept of sport you should..

Answer 11

first say “for the purpose of this question” I would define the concept of sport as x y z

Question 12

types of definitions

Answer 12

1: lexical definitions
2: Precising definition
3: stipulative defintions
4: persuasive/rhethorical definitions

Question 13

definitions serve several purposes, including:

Answer 13

1: telling us what a word means (lexical definition)
2: making a term more precise or stipulating a new/ different meaning (precising/stipulative definition)
3: persuading/influencing by distorting real meaning to evoke positive/negative emotions (persuasive/rhetorical definition)

Question 14

lexical defintions

Answer 14

• ## explain the ordinary meaning of a word (dictionary definition)

Question 15

precising definitions

Answer 15

• make a term more precise in a specific context

Question 16

stipulative definitions

Answer 16

• assign new/different meanings to a word in a specific context

Question 17

persuasive/rhetorical definitions

Answer 17

• manipulate the real meaning to influence/persuade with emotive meaning/force of words

Question 18

three common types of definitions

Answer 18

1: definitions by example
2: definitions by synonym
3: analytical defintion

Question 19

definitions by example

Answer 19

• (ostensive definition): uses examples to show what the term refers to

Question 20

definition by synonym

Answer 20

gives another word that means the same as the term being defined

Question 21

analytical defintion

Answer 21

specifies the features a thing must have for the term to apply to it
- most popular is this

Question 22

tips for definitions

Answer 22

• definitions should not take sides in a debate and should strive for neutral ground
• should be clear, simple and avoid emotive language
• it is OKAY to have incomplete definitions for abstract concepts like freedom and loyalty

Question 23

what are the 4 components to writing argumentative response

Answer 23

1: statement of issue
2: one’s position on the issue
3: arguments supporting the position
4: rebuttals of arguments against the position

Question 24

what argument should be the strongest?

Answer 24

the first needs to be the strongest as it gives motivation to the reader to continue

Question 25

persuasive writing

Answer 25

• aims to support a position on an issue
• concede to good opposing arguments and focus on the most important considerations if space is limited
• present strongest arguments first
• emphasis is on making and recognizing good arguments rather than only devising effective persuasive techniques