This is the first introduction to logical thinking. We explore what a classic syllogism is by defining the parts of a logical argument. Logical fallacies are explored using the syllogism. And finally, an application assignment is explored to try to find the components in an argument to determine if the argument is valid or a fallacy.
The structure of the logical syllogism involves premise statements and a conclusion. Generally, syllogisms are made up of three statements (two premises and a conclusion). In those three statements, there are three concepts that are related (A, B, and C). The Syllogism then becomes:
There is also a way to introduce a negative. (Note how this changes the order of the C relationship to A and B.)
The following videos give further explanations as well as examples.
Article link used in the video:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303404704577311943943416560.html
Article link used in video:
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/03/14/debate0315/