Reason and Argument Richard Feldman Second Edition

Reason and Argument Feldman Second Edition Second Feldman Argument and Reason Reason and Argument Richard Feldman Second Edition ISBN 978-1-29204-264-0 9 781292 042640 Pearson New International Edition Reason and Argument Richard Feldman Second Edition International_PCL_TP.indd 1 7/29/13 11:23 AM ISBN 10: 1-292-04264-8 ISBN 13: 978-1-292-04264-0 Pearson Education Limited Edinburgh Gate Harlow Essex CM20 2JE England and Associated Companies throughout the world Visit us on the World Wide Web at: www.pearsoned.co.uk © Pearson Education Limited 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without either the prior written permission of the publisher or a licence permitting restricted copying in the United Kingdom issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. The use of any trademark in this text does not vest in the author or publisher any trademark ownership rights in such trademarks, nor does the use of such trademarks imply any afﬁ liation with or endorsement of this book by such owners. ISBN 10: 1-292-04264-8 ISBN 10: 1-269-37450-8 ISBN 13: 978-1-292-04264-0 ISBN 13: 978-1-269-37450-7 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Printed in the United States of America Copyright_Pg_7_24.indd 1 7/29/13 11:28 AM 1121331711912442603113684191136691 PEARSON C U S T OM LIBRAR Y Table of Contents Glossary Richard Feldman 1 1. Introduction Richard Feldman 11 2. Truth and Rationality Richard Feldman 36 3. Well-Formed Arguments Richard Feldman 69 4. Strong Arguments Richard Feldman 112 5. Reconstructing Arguments Richard Feldman 133 6. Details of Argument Reconstruction Richard Feldman 171 7. Evaluating Arguments Richard Feldman 191 8. Arguments and Testimony Richard Feldman 244 9. Statistical Arguments and Predictions Richard Feldman 260 10. Causal Arguments Richard Feldman 311 11. Moral Arguments Richard Feldman 368 Index 419 I II Glossary accidental correlation A correlation that results from coincidental or accidental factors rather than from a causal connection between the correlated factors. accuracy premise In statistical arguments, a premise saying that the measured property accurately measures the target property. More precisely, a premise saying that the percentage of members of the population having the target property is (approximately) the same as the percentage of the same population having the measured property. ambiguous Having more than one meaning. antecedent The “if” clause of a conditional. argument A sequence of propositions intended to establish the truth of one of the propositions. The components of an argument are its premises and conclusion. argument analysis The process of interpreting (reconstructing) and evaluating an argument. argument evaluation The process of determining whether an argument is a good argument. argument reconstruction The process of rewriting in standard form an argument expressed in ordinary prose. argument stopper A response to an argument that has the effect of cutting off dis- cussion and preventing careful argument analysis. From Reasoning and Argument, Second Edition. Richard Feldman. Copyright © 1999 by Pearson Education, Inc. Published by Pearson Prentice Hall. All rights reserved. Glossary argumentative writing Writing in which an author defends a point of view by means of arguments. Contrast with descriptive writing and rhetorical writing. belief A psychological attitude of acceptance toward a statement. To believe a statement is to think that it is a true statement. benefit Good or desirable consequence or feature of an action. Benefits are features of an action that count in favoring of performing it. Contrast with harm. borderline case Example in which the application of a vague term is indefinite. causal chain A sequence of causally related events. causal factors reversed See factors reversed. causation The process by which one event or group of events brings about another event. cheap validity In argument reconstruction, converting an invalid argument to a valid one simply by adding a premise saying that if the other premises are true, then the conclusion is true. Often, resorting to cheap validity is a way to avoid stating the underlying idea of the argument. cogent argument An argument that is not valid, but that follows a pattern such that all arguments following that pattern have a conclusion that is probably true if the premises are true; informally, an argument whose premises are good but not conclusive reasons for its conclusion. common cause One factor that causes each of two effects, which are not causes of one another. Two factors are said to have a common cause when neither is a cause of the other, but they are both the result of one causal factor. comparative causal statement A statement saying that one factor is a stronger or weaker cause of an effect within a population. competing arguments Arguments whose conclusions deny each other. complete cause The combination of all the factors causally responsible for an effect. Contrast with partial cause. compound argument An argument with one or more intermediate conclusions, which are then used to support a final conclusion. compound sentence Sentence formed by combining two or more simpler sentences. conclusion What an argument is intended to establish; the point of an argument; the proposition an argument is supposed to support. conclusion indicator Word that indicates the presence of a conclusion, such as “therefore” or “hence.” conclusive evidence Evidence for a proposition that is so strong that it guarantees that the proposition is true. conditional Compound sentence formed by connecting two simpler sentences with the words “If . , then . .” The part following “if” is the antecedent and the part following “then” is the consequent. 2 Glossary conjunction Compound sentence formed by connecting two simpler sentences with the word “and” or its equivalent. consequent The “then” clause of a conditional. context The situation or circumstances in which a sentence is uttered, including the person who is speaking, the time, the place, and so on. control group In experiments, a group from which some suspected causal factor is withheld in order to see if its members show the effect under study anyway. Contrast with experimental group. correlation statement A statement comparing the rate at which a property turns up in two populations. Such statements can always be expressed by a sentence of the form: “A is (positively/negatively) correlated with B in population P.” There is posi- tive correlation when, within population P, the percentage of As who are B is greater than the percentage of non-As who are B. There is a negative correlation when the percentage of As who are B is less than the percentage of non-As who are B. counterexample (to a generalization) Actual or hypothetical example showing that a generalization is false. declarative sentence A sentence that is used to express a proposition. Contrast with imperative sentence and interrogative sentence. deductively sound argument A valid argument with true premises. deductively strong argument A valid argument with premises that are reasonable for a person to believe. The deductive strength of an argument can vary from one person to another, depending on the person’s evidence concerning the premises. defeated argument Cogent argument with reasonable premises whose conclusion is made unreasonable for a person by the person’s background evidence. Whether an argument is defeated for a person depends on that person’s evidence. descriptive writing Writing in which an author merely describes some event or situation, without attempting to present arguments. Contrast with argumentative and descriptive writing. direct justification of a conclusion A premise directly justifies a conclusion when it properly appears in the list of steps justifying the conclusion. No intermediate steps are needed. disbelief A psychological attitude of rejection toward a statement. To disbelieve a statement is to think that it is a false statement. disjunction Compound statement formed by connecting two simpler statements with the word “or” or its equivalent. distant cause An event that causes another event with many intervening or intermediate causes. evaluating an argument The process of determining whether an argument is a good argument. 3 Glossary evidence Information indicating the truth or falsity of a proposition. experimental group In experiments, a group that is exposed to a suspected causal factor. Contrast with control group. explicit premise or conclusion Premise or conclusion of an argument that is directly stated in a piece of argumentative writing. Contrast with implicit premise or conclusion. explicitly causal statement A statement describing a causal connection using some form of the word “cause.” Contrast with implicitly causal statement. factors reversed (in correlation statements) A correlation statement of the form “A is positively correlated with B in P” for which it is true that B causes A in P rather than that A causes B in P. fallibilism The doctrine that a rational belief can be false; the idea that it can be reasonable to believe something on the basis of evidence that is not entirely conclusive. falsity A property of a proposition that does not describe things as they actually are. A false statement does not correspond to the facts. fine-tuning a reconstruction Improving on an initial reconstruction of an argument by making it clearer, more precise, and the best possible version of the argument under consideration. general causal statement A causal statement reporting connection between kinds of events. In standard form; “C is a causal factor for E in population P.” Contrast with singular causal statement.

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