INTRODUCTION: APPLIED LOGIC AND CRITICAL
REASONING
POJ
• The word logic comes from the
Greek word logos, meaning ‘reason’.
What is • It is the science of the normative
formal principles of reasoning.
logic?
• Traditionally, logic is studied as a branch
of philosophy.
• This involves the analysis of the patterns
of reasoning by which a conclusion is
What… properly drawn from a set of premises.
• By the mid 19th century, formal logic was
established as the foundation of mathematics; the
development of formal logic is the foundation of
computer science.
• This course will concentrate on more informal
What… logic, which is the study of the principles and
criteria of valid inference and demonstration.
• More simply put, it is the study of truth-preserving
arguments.
• In this context, logic investigates and classifies the
structure of statements and arguments, both
through the study of formal systems of inference
What… and through the study of arguments in natural
language.
• Applied logic is the practical application of right
reasoning. Applied logic in this course means logic
applied to the study of law.
• Applied logic enquires into the objective value of
What is concepts, the import and value of judgments and
reasoning, the criteria of truth, the nature of
applied logic? evidence, certitude, etc.
• Logic will assist you to analyse an argument
or a piece of reasoning, and work out
whether it is likely to be correct or not.
• You do not need to know logic to argue,
Applied… but if you know even a little, you will find it
easier to spot invalid arguments.
• The word critic comes from the Greek word krités,
meaning a person who offers reasoned judgement or
analysis, value judgement, interpretation, or observation.
• Critical reasoning is the process of actively and skillfully
conceptualising, applying, analysing, synthesising, and
What is critical evaluating information to reach an answer or
reasoning? conclusion.
• It is a mode of thinking about any subject, content, or
problem, in which the thinker improves the quality of their
thinking by skillfully taking charge of the structures
inherent in thinking and imposing intellectual standards
upon them.
Critical…
• Reasoning and critical thinking are commonly understood
as one aspect of the field of logic when considered
broadly.
• A competent critical thinker:
• raises vital questions and problems, formulating them
clearly and precisely;
• gathers, assesses and interprets relevant information,
Critical… to arrive at well- reasoned conclusions and solutions,
testing them against relevant criteria and standards;
• thinks open-mindedly within alternative systems of
thought, recognising and assessing, as need be, their
assumptions, implications, and practical consequences;
• identifies fallacies of reasoning and then avoids them in
constructing an argument; and
Critical… • effectively communicates solutions to complex
problems.
• (ie the process of critically thinking,
evaluating and logically considering
information) is the conclusion.
The outcome of • The challenge of reasoning is to apply logic
the reasoning to arrive at an appropriate conclusion.
process
• Sound, effective reasoning results in a
supported, accurate, appropriate conclusion;
fallacious reasoning results in an error.
• It is up to YOU to distinguish sound and
Outcome… appropriate reasoning from fallacious
reasoning.
• Critical thinking is very important as it allows
purposes, questions, information, inferences,
concepts, assumptions, implications, points of
view, beliefs, and situations to be analysed,
evaluated and restructured, decreasing the
Outcome… risk of acting on a false premise.
• Critical thinking does not ensure that either the truth or
correct conclusion is reached. Important information may
be undiscovered or the information may not even be
known.
• Moreover, unjustified inferences may be made,
Outcome… inappropriate concepts used, important implications may
be overlooked, or a narrow or unfair point of view used.
• The writer may be a victim of self-delusion,
egocentricity or sociocentricity, or closed-mindedness.
• Thinking may be unclear, inaccurate, imprecise,
irrelevant, narrow, shallow, illogical, trivial, intellectually
arrogant, intellectually lazy, or intellectually hypocritical.
Outcome… • These are some of the ways that human thinking can be
flawed.
• ‘Reasoning is a process of thought aimed
at reaching or justifying a conclusion. The
process involves a consideration of facts
and impressions, experiences and
In summary principles, objectives
(Zelermyer, 1960).
and ideals’.