The Voice of Reason: Fundamentals of Critical Thinking - Couverture souple

Porter, Burton F.

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 0195141229 ISBN 13 : 9780195141221

Editeur : Oxford University Press, 2001

Synopsis

This introduction to critical thinking covers the areas of (A) thought and language, (B) systematic reasoning, and (C) modes of proof. In addition to traditional topics such as ambiguity, definition, informal fallacies, deduction, and induction, this book uniquely presents the different rules of evidence in fields such as law, science, literature, and history. An accompanying Instructor's Manual contains the answers to the book's extensive exercises.

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur :

Lively, comprehensive, and contemporary, The Voice of Reason: Fundamentals of Critical Thinking covers three principal areas: thought and language, systematic reasoning, and modes of proof. It employs highly accessible explanations and a multitude of examples drawn from social issues and various academic fields, showing students and other readers how to construct and criticize arguments using the techniques of sound reasoning.
The Voice of Reason examines the traditional elements of the field and also explores new ground. The first section of the book elucidates the relationship between thought and language, explaining how words function. It discusses meaning, connotation, vagueness, ambiguity, and definition, identifying the linguistic elements that can produce mistakes in thinking. The next section describes the rules of systematic reasoning, examining such topics as truth, relevance, and adequacy; deductive logic (categorical, hypothetical, and disjunctive); and induction (cause and effect, analogy, generalization, and hypothesis). Sixteen fallacies in thinking are also described through extensive illustrations and applications. The final section of the book offers a unique study of what constitutes proof in several different areas--including politics, advertising, law, and social issues--as well as in the academic disciplines of literature, science, history, and ethics.

Biographie de l'auteur :

Burton Porter is at Western New England College.

À propos de cette édition

• Éditeur: Oxford University Press
• Date d'édition: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0195141229
• ISBN 13: 9780195141221
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 384