Thinking about Logic: Classic Essays

by M. Cahn,Steven

• ISBN13: 9780813344690
• ISBN10: 0813344697
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2010-08-31
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Thinking about Logicis an accessible and thought-provoking collection of classic articles in the philosophy of logic. The perfect companion to any formal logic course or textbook, this volume illuminates the philosophical issues concerning logic itself and the perennial philosophical questions about knowledge, meaning, rationality, and reality. The editors have selected each essay for its brevity, clarity, and impact and have included insightful introductions to each part. The puzzles and questions raised will help students acquire a more thorough understanding of fundamental logic concepts and a firm command of the connections between formal logic and other areas of philosophical study: philosophy of language, metaphysics, philosophy of science, and epistemology.

Author Biography

Steven M. Cahn is professor of philosophy at the Graduate School and University Center, City University of New York. He is the author of numerous books, including Puzzles and Perplexities: Collected Essays and Philosophical Explorations: Freedom, God, and Goodness. Among the many volumes he has edited and coedited are Philosophy for the 21st Century: A Comprehensive Reader; Knowledge and Reality; Classics of Political and Moral Philosophy; and Classic and Contemporary Readings in the Philosophy of Education.

 

Robert B. Talisse is associate professor of philosophy and political science at Vanderbilt University. His books include Democracy and Moral Conflict; Pragmatism: A Guide for the Perplexed; A Pragmatist Philosophy of Democracy; and Democracy after Liberalism. He has also coedited numerous volumes, including The Pragmatic Turn; Problems in Political Philosophy; and A Teacher’s Life: Essays for Steven Cahn.

 

Scott F. Aikin is a visiting scholar at Vanderbilt University with a primary affiliation with Western Kentucky University. He is coauthor of Pragmatism: A Guide for the Perplexed and coeditor of The Pragmatic Turn.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. vii
Logic and Knowledge
What the Tortoise Said to Achilles	p. 3
What Achilles Said to the Tortoise	p. 9
What Achilles Should Have Said to the Tortoise	p. 19
Questions	p. 35
Logic and Definition
The Runabout Inference-Ticket	p. 39
Roundabout the Runabout Inference-Ticket	p. 43
Tonk, Plonk and Plink	p. 51
Questions	p. 59
Logic and Inference
A Counterexample to Modus Ponens	p. 63
Not a Counterexample to Modus Ponens	p. 79
Assumptions and the Supposed Counterexamples to Modus Ponens	p. 85
Questions	p. 93
Logic and Freedom
'It Was to Be'	p. 97
Fatalism	p. 123
Time, Truth, and Ability	p. 137
Questions	p. 145
Logic and Reality
The Justification of Deduction	p. 149
The Problem of Counterfactual Conditionals	p. 163
On What There Is	p. 189
Questions	p. 211
About the Contributors	p. 213
Source Credits	p. 215
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