6 Good Reasons to Study Logic
Why Analyzing Arguments Is Good for You
Emrys Westacott
is a professor of philosophy at Alfred University.
Updated October
17, 2018
A first-year
college student found himself repeatedly impressed by the wit and wisdom of the
philosophy majors he met. One day he
plucked up the nerve to ask one of them: "So how come all you
philosophy majors are so smart?"
"Oh,
that's no mystery," the philosopher answered, "we've all studied
logic."
"Really?"
said the freshman, "that's all it takes? So if I study logic, I'll
become super smart?"
"Sure. Of
course, it's too late to sign up for a class now. But I'll tell you what, you
can use my old logic textbook and study it yourself. Here, I've got it with me.
I'll let you have it for $20."
"Wow,
thanks!"
The deal was
transacted and the first year excitedly went off with the textbook to ramp up
his IQ. Later that day he ran into the philosophy major again.
"Hey,"
he shouted. "That logic book you sold me for $20—I came across it in the
bookstore for $10. All that rubbish about logic making me smart. I see through
it now. You were just ripping me off!"
"See,"
said the other, "it's already starting to work."
The benefits of
studying logic might not kick in quite that quickly. But there really are good
reasons to take a logic class or to study it yourself from a book or by using
an online resource, even if you're not a philosophy major.
01
of 06
Symbolic Logic Is Fun
Studying basic
symbolic logic is rather like learning a new language, but one with a small
vocabulary and just a few rules of grammar. You learn to do all sorts of things
with these new symbols: you use them to analyze the logic of ordinary
sentences, to test arguments for validity, and to
construct proofs for complex arguments whose validity isn't obvious. The
exercises that help you become adept at these things are like puzzles, so if
you like Futoshiki or sudoku you'll probably love logic.
02
of 06
Knowing Whether an Argument Is Valid or Invalid Is a
Valuable Skill
Logic is
essentially the study of reasoning or argumentation. We all use reason all the
time to draw inferences that are useful to us. If our car won't start, we
reason that the battery may be dead. So we test the battery. If the battery
isn't dead, then we deduce the problem must lie elsewhere, perhaps with the
starter motor. So we check the starter motor. And so on. In this example the
reasoning is simple, but sometimes chains of reasoning can become quite
complicated. Training ourselves to construct good arguments and to spot bad
ones is a skill that is useful in just about every field as well as in everyday
life. It helps steer us toward truth and away from falsehood.
03
of 06
Good Logic Is an Effective Tool of Persuasion
The art of
persuasion is called rhetoric. Rhetoric, like logic, used to be
an essential part of the liberal arts curriculum. Sadly, neither is usually
required any longer, and rhetoric has given way to Composition 101. Rhetoric
can encompass just about any means of persuasion short of bribery, blackmail,
or physical violence. It includes, for instance, appeals to emotion,
provocative images, or clever wordplay. There's no doubt that these can be
persuasive; but so can good cogent reasoning. We're not saying that good
arguments will always win the day over clever rhetoric: human beings are not
Vulcans like Mr. Spock. But in the long run, good arguments will usually come out
on top.
04
of 06
Studying Logic Helps You to Spot Fallacies
Fallacious
thinking abounds in our culture. Politicians, pundits, advertisers, and
corporate spokespersons attack straw men, appeal to majority opinion, pursue
red herrings, or reject a view because of something they dislike about the
person who holds it. Familiarity with common fallacies of this sort helps make
one a more critical reader, listener, and thinker.
05
of 06
Logic Is a Foundational Discipline
Logic is
foundational to any field that makes use of arguments. It has especially close
connections to mathematics, computer science, and philosophy. Both Aristotelian
logic and modern symbolic logic are impressive bodies of knowledge that
constitute major intellectual achievements.
06
of 06
Clear Thinking Makes One a Better Citizen
Dubious
techniques of persuasion, such as "criticizing" a candidate's views
by showing an unflattering image of them, are used especially in election
campaigns. They are no doubt sometimes effective, but that is no reason for
preferring them to good clear argumentation. On the contrary, it's why we need
logical thinking more than ever
April is the official month for:
- From thebalancecareers.com
The following
events, industries, causes and emotions (yes, emotions) are observed all month
long in April unless otherwise indicated. Even cannabis (fast becoming
legalized), Florida tomatoes, celery, and soft pretzels are honored,
beginning April 1 through April 30—every year.
- African-American Women's Fitness Month
- Alcohol Awareness Month
- Amateur Radio Month
- American Cancer Society Month
- Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month
- Black Women's History Month
- Bowel Cancer Awareness Month
- Celebrate Diversity Month
- Community Service Month
- Confederate History Month
- Distracted Driving Awareness Month
- Financial Literacy Month
- Fresh Florida Tomato Month
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome Awareness Month
- Jewish-American Heritage Month
- Keep America Beautiful Month
- Lawn and Garden Month
- Mathematics Awareness Month
- Month of the Military Child
- National Autism Awareness Month
- National Better Hearing and Speech Month
- National Canine Fitness Month
- National Cannabis Awareness Month
- National Car Care Awareness Month
- National Child Abuse Awareness Month
- National Couple Appreciation Month
- National Deaf History Month (March 13 to April 15)
- National Decorating Month
- National Donate Life Awareness Month
- National Fair Housing Month
- National Food Month
- National Fresh Celery Month
- National Garden Month
- National Humor Month
- National Internship Awareness Month
- National Inventor's Month
- National Jazz Appreciation Month
- National Landscape Architecture Month
- National Medical Laboratory Professionals Week (last full week in April)
- National Mental Health Month
- National Month of Hope
- National Multiple Birth Awareness Month
- National Occupational Therapy Month
- National Older Americans Month
- National Parkinson's Awareness Month
- National Pecan Month
- National Poetry Month
- National Safe Digging Month
- National Siblings Day (April 10)
- National Soft Pretzel Month
- National Soy Foods Month
- National STDs Education and Awareness Month
- National Straw Hat Month
- National Volunteer Month
- National Welding Month
- Occupational Therapy Month
- Pets are
Wonderful Month
- Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month
- Records and Information Management Month
- Scottish-American Heritage Month
- Sexual Assault Awareness Month
- Stress Awareness Month
- Thai Heritage Month
- Women's Health Care Month
International and One-Day Observances
Because you may
be in the business of working with internationals, we can not forget the
participation of other countries. Here are a few international honorees, as
well as some causes that are observed globally:
- April is International Guitar Month, recognized in several countries.
- Ontario, Canada recognizes April as Sikh Heritage Month.
- April is National Pet Month in the United Kingdom, although the U.S. waits until May to honor its non-human family members.
- International Pillow Fight Day is observed on April 6 in 2019.
- World Autism Awareness Day also falls on April 2 in 2019.
- World Health Day is April 7, in 2019.
