LOGIC AND CRITICAL THINKING(PHIL101)

Chapter 1-Logic and Philosophy

Chapter 2- Argument and Logical Reasoning/Basic Concepts Of Logic
Chapter 3-Logic And Language
Chapter 4-Basic Concepts Of Critical Thinking
Chapter 5-Logical Reasoning And Fallacies
Chapter 6-Categorical Propositions
 CHAPTER ONE
LOGIC AND PHILOSOPHY
Lesson 1: Meaning and Nature of Philosophy
Philosophy is derived from two Greek words: Philos meaning to “love” and
Sophia meaning “wisdom”. “Philosophia” means the “love of wisdom”.
Wisdom itself means, “the ability to make sensible decisions and give good
judgement because of the experience and knowledge that somebody has”.

Knowledge acquisition through critical thinking and analysis of issues before

making concrete judgment; the individual must cultivate a very high degree of
questioning ability, a propensity for a high level of speculation and fantasies.
The literal meaning of philosophy therefore is “the love for a high degree of
knowledge”.
 Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems concerning matters such as
existence, knowledge, truth, beauty, law, justice, validity, mind, and language and it deals primarily
with issues.

• The best way to learn and understand philosophy is to philosophize; i.e., to be confronted with
philosophical questions.

• Socrates once stated that “Wonder is the feeling of a philosopher, and philosophy begins in
wonder”.

• The ancient Greek thinker Pythagoras was the first to use the word “philosopher” to call a person
who clearly shows a marked curiosity in the things he experiences.

• Socrates, = wisdom consists of a critical habit and eternal vigilance about all things and a
reverence for truth. Development of critical habits, the continuous search for truth, and the
• Philosophy is a rational and critical enterprise that tries to formulate and answer
fundamental questions through an intensive application of reason- an application
that draws on analysis, comparison, and evaluation.

• It involves reason, rational criticism, examination, and analysis.

• Philosophy has a constructive side, it attempts to formulate rationally defensible

answers to certain fundamental questions concerning the nature of reality, the
nature of value, and the nature of knowledge and truth.

• Its has critical side, that is manifested when it deals with giving a rational critic,
analysis, clarification, and evaluation of answers given to basic metaphysical,
epistemological, and axiological questions.
 • Basic Features of Philosophy
 Its reliance on the use of logical reasoning by examining every evidence
 the tentative nature of whatever conclusions that may be reached on an issue.
 It is a set of views or beliefs about life and the universe, which are often held uncritically.
 It is a process of reflecting on and criticizing our most deeply held conceptions and
beliefs.
 It is a rational attempt to look at the world as a whole.
 It is the logical analysis of language and the clarification of the meaning of words and
concepts.
 A group of perennial/constant problems that interest people and for which philosophers
always have sought answers.
Core Fields of Philosophy

1) Metaphysics: It studies the ultimate nature of reality or existence.

It deal with issues of reality, God, freedom, soul/immortality, the mind-body problem, form and
substance relationship, cause and effect relationship, and other related issues.
Metaphysical questions may be divided into four subsets or aspects.
Cosmological Aspect: It consists in the study of theories about the origin, nature, and
development of the universe as an orderly system.
Theological Aspect: It is part of religious theory that deals with conceptions of and about God.
Anthropological Aspect: It deals with the study of all attributes and nature of human beings
Ontological Aspect: Is the study of the nature of existence, or what it means for anything to exist.
 2) Epistemology: Studies about the nature, scope, meaning, and source of
knowledge.
A major aspect of epistemology relates to the sources of human knowledge.
 Empiricism (knowledge obtained through the senses). human experience.
 Rationalism: source of human knowledge is reason.
 Intuition- the direct apprehension of knowledge that is not derived from
conscious reasoning or immediate sense perception
 Revelation: The source of knowledge is related with the divine will which is
absolute and uncontaminated
 Authority The source of knowledge is some authority, such as a textbook,
teacher, or reference work.
3)Ethics: It takes up the meanings of our moral concepts—such as right action,
obligation, and justice—and formulates principles to guide moral decisions, whether in
private or public life.
4.Philosophy of Art (Aesthetics): It concerns the nature of art, including the
performing arts and painting, sculpture, and literature.
Axiology and Logic

 Axiology is the study or theory of value.

 It deals with issues of value in three areas, namely Ethics, Aesthetics, and
Social/Political Philosophy.

Ethics: It is a philosophical study of moral principles, values, codes, and rules, which
may be used as standards for determining what kind of human conduct/action is said to
be good or bad, right or wrong. It has three main branches: meta-ethics, normative ethics,
and applied ethics.
 Normative Ethics: It refers to the ethical studies that attempt to study and determine
precisely the moral rules, principles, standards and goals by which human beings
might evaluate and judge the moral values of their conducts, actions and decisions.
 Meta-ethics: It deals with investigation of the meaning of ethical terms,
including a critical study of how ethical statements can be verified.
 Applied Ethics :It is a normative ethics that attempts to explain, justify,
apply moral rules, principles, standards, and positions to specific moral
problems, such as capital punishment, euthanasia, abortion, adultery, animal
right, and so on.
 Aesthetics: It is the theory of beauty. It studies about the particular value of
our artistic and aesthetic experiences.
 Social/Political Philosophy: It studies about of the value judgments
operating in a civil society, be it social or political.
Importance of Learning Philosophy

Intellectual and Behavioral Independence

Reflective Self-Awareness
Flexibility, Tolerance, and Open-Mindedness.
Creative and Critical Thinking.
Conceptualized and well-thought-out value systems in morality, art,
politics etc.
It helps us to deal with the uncertainty of living.
END
 CHAPTER TWO
Argument and Logical Reasoning

Basic Concepts of Logic: Arguments, Premises and Conclusions

• What is the Meaning of Logic?
• It comes from Greek word ‘’logos ‘’, which means
“word”, “speech”, “reason”, “meaning” or “thought”.
As a field of study=a branch of philosophy that deals with the study
of arguments and the principles and methods of right reasoning.
 As an instrument=used to formulate our own rational arguments and
critically evaluate the soundness of others’ arguments.
Logic can be defined in different ways.

Is a science that evaluates arguments.

Is the study of methods for evaluating arguments. More precisely, logic is the study of
methods for evaluating whether the premises of arguments adequately support or
provide a good evidence for the conclusions.
A science that helps to develop the method and principles that we may use as a criterion
for evaluating the arguments of others and as a guide to construct good arguments of our
own.
Logic is the attempt to codify the rules of rational thought.
What is the Benefit of Studying Logic?

 “Logic sharpens and refines our natural gifts to think, reason and argue.”(C.S.
Layman)
 It helps us to develop the skill needed to construct sound (good) and fallacy-free

arguments of one’s own and to evaluate the arguments of others;

• It provides a fundamental defense against the prejudiced and uncivilized
attitudes that threaten the foundation of a civilized and democratic society;
• It helps us to distinguish good arguments from bad arguments;
 It helps us to understand and identify the common logical errors in reasoning;
 It helps us to understand and identify the common confusions that often happen
 What is an Argument?

It is a group of statements that consists of at least one premise and a conclusion. Premises and
conclusion are therefore the two components of an argument.
• Premise: is the statement which provides reason (evidence) for believing the truth of the
conclusion.
• Conclusion: is the statement that is claimed to follow from the premise or it is the statement
that is affirmed on the basis of the premise.
• Some Africans are black. Some Africans are black.
• Tsionawit is Ethiopian. Zelalem is an African.
• Therefore, Tsionawit is African. Therefore, Zelalem is black.
Inference: It is the reasoning process used to produce an argument.
Statement/Proposition: - It is a sentence that is either true or false/that has truth-value.

E.g a)Dr. Abiy Ahmed the current Prime Minister of Ethiopia.

b)Mekelle is the capital city of Tigray Region……Ethiopia was colonized by Germany.
All statements are sentences but all sentences are not statements.
There are sentences that are not statements. Examples:
a) Would you close the window? (Question)
b) Let us study together. (Proposal)
c) Right on! (Exclamation)
d) I suggest that you read philosophy texts. (Suggestion)
e) Give me your ID Card, Now! (Command)
An argument may contain more than one premise but only one conclusion.

 Example-1: Example-2:
 All Ethiopians are Africans. (Premise 1) Some Africans are black. (Premise-1
 Tsionawit is Ethiopian. (Premise2) Zelalem is an African. (Premise-2)
Therefore, Tsionawit is African. (Conclusion) Therefore, Zelalem is black. (Conclusion)
All arguments may be placed in one of two basic groups:
 Good (well-supported) arguments: premises really do support the conclusion.
 Bad (poorly-supported) arguments: premises dose not really support the conclusion even it
is claimed.
How can we distinguish premises from conclusion and vice versa?
1)By looking at an indicator premise and conclusion Indicator words.
Conclusion  Hence Premise indicator words
Indicators  It shows that  As Since
 Therefore  Whence  For As indicated by
 Wherefore  Thus In that
 Accordingly  Consequently  May be inferred from
 Provided that  We may infer  Inasmuch as
 It must be that  It implies that  Because For the reason that
 Entails that  As a result etc Owing to
 So  Seeing that Given that
 Example-For Conclusion indicator
Women are mammals.
Zenebech is a woman.
Therefore, Zenebech is a mammal.
Example-For Premise indicator
You should avoid any form of cheating on exams because cheating on exams is
punishable by the Senate Legislation of the University.
2) By looking its inference that hold between statements
E.g Our country should increase the quality and quantity of its military(C). Ethnic
conflicts are recently intensified (p1); boarder conflicts are escalating (p2);
international terrorist activities are increasing (p3).
‘‘For this reason.’’ =is special premise indicator word. This indicator can be both
premise and conclusion indicator.
Statement that comes before ‘‘for this reason’’ is the premise of an argument.

 Statement that comes after “for this reason” is the conclusion.

Sometimes a single indicator can be used to identify more than one premise.
Consider the following argument:Tsionawit is a faithful wife, for Ethiopian
women are faithful wives and Tsionawit an Ethiopian.
The premise indicator ‘‘for’’ goes with both ‘‘Ethiopian women are faithful
wives’’ and ‘‘Tsionawit is an Ethiopian”. These are the premises. By process of
elimination, ‘‘Tsionawit is a faithful wife” is the conclusion.
 Techniques of Recognizing Arguments

• Two conditions must be fulfilled for a passage to maintain

to prove something:
• 1. At least one of the statements must claim to present evidence or
reasons. (This is called factual claim).
• 2. The existence of reasoning process (This is called inferential
claim).
• Inferential claim can be either explicit or implicit.
• An explicit inferential claim is usually asserted by premise or
conclusion indicator words.
• An implicit inferential claim is a claim which can be recognized
by reason or inference hold between the statements.
Recognizing Non-argumentative Passages

Non-argumentative passages are passages, which lack an inferential claim.

 These include simple non-inferential passages ,expository passages,

illustrations, explanations, and conditional statements.
• Simple Non-inferential Passages: Contain statements that could be premises
or conclusions (or both), but what is missing is a claim that any potential
premise supports a conclusion or that any potential conclusion is supported by
premises. These are warnings, pieces of advice, statements of belief or
opinion, loosely associated statements, and reports
• Warnings: It is a form of expression that is intended to put someone on
guard against a dangerous or detrimental situation. e.g. Whatever you
promise to tell, never confide political secrets to your wife.
•
• Piece of advice: It is a form of expression that makes a recommendation
about some future decision or course of conduct. E.g ‘After class hours, I
would suggest that you give careful consideration to the subject matter you
have discussed.
• Statement of belief or opinion: These are simply personal opinion or
what somebody’s believes at a certain time. Example:
• In my opinion, leadership in Ethiopia nowadays changed from bad to good.
(Expression of opinion)
• Loosely associated statements may be about the same general subject,
but they lack a claim that one of them is proved by the other. Example:
Anything that a doctor does that requires cutting or injecting is a
‘procedure.’ Anything that a doctor does that requires thinking or
counseling is a “cognitive Services.” Procedures pay much better than
cognitive services.
• A report consists of a group of statements that convey information about some
situation or ever.
• Example: The great renaissance dam of Ethiopia has opened an employment
opportunity for thousands of Ethiopians. In its completion, thirteen thousand
Ethiopians are expected to be hired.
• An expository passage is a kind of discourse that begins with a topic sentence
followed by one or more sentences that develop the topic sentence. Example:
There is a stylized relation of artist to mass audience in the sports, especially in
baseball. Each player develops a style of his own-the swagger as he steps to the
plate, the unique windup a pitcher has, the clean-swinging and hard-driving hits,
the precision quickness and grace of infield and outfield, the sense of surplus
power behind whatever is done.
(Max Lerner, America as a Civilization)
• In this passage the topic sentence is stated first, and the remaining sentences
merely develop and flesh out this topic sentence. This passage is not argument,
Illustrations: It is an expression involving one or more examples that is intended to
show what something means or how it is done. It often confused with arguments
because many illustrations contain indicator words such as “thus.”
Example: Chemical elements, as well as compounds, can be represented by
molecular formulas. Thus, oxygen is represented by “O2”, water by “H2O”, and
sodium chloride by “NaCl”.
It is not an argument, because it makes no claim that anything is being proved.
“thus” indicates how something is done - how chemical elements and compounds
can be represented by formulas.
Explanations:It is an expression that purports to shed light on some event or
phenomenon, which is usually accepted as a matter of fact. Every explanation is
composed of two distinct components:
 A. Explanandum is the statement that describes the event or phenomenon to be
explained.
 B. Explanans is the statement or group of statements that purports to do the
explaining.
E.g. Cows digest grass while humans cannot, because their digestive systems contain
enzyme not found in humans.Here, the explanandum is the statement “Cows digest
grass while humans cannot” and the explanans is “their [cows’] digestive systems
Conditional Statements: It is an “if . . . then . . .” statement.
Example: If you study hard, then you will score ‘A’ grade.
Antecedent (if-clause)=component statement immediately following
the “if” and Consequent (then-clause)=following the “then”.
Conditional statements are not arguments. B/c there is no claim that
either the antecedent or the consequent presents evidence.
• However, the inferential content of a conditional statement may be re-
expressed to form an argument.
• E.g: If he is selling our national secretes to enemies, then he is a traitor.
• He is selling our national secretes to enemies.
• Therefore, he is a traitor.
Conditional statements are especially important in logic (and many other fields)
because they express the relationship between necessary/essential and
sufficient/enough conditions.

A is said to be a sufficient condition for B whenever the occurrence of A is all that is

needed for the occurrence of B.

For example, being a dog is a sufficient condition for being an animal.

 On the other hand, B is said to be a necessary condition for A whenever A cannot

occur without the occurrence of B.

Thus, being an animal is a necessary condition for being a dog.

In general, non-argumentative passages may contain components that resemble
the premises and conclusions of arguments, but they do not have an inferential
claim.
However, some passages like expository passages, illustrations, and
explanations can be interpreted as arguments; and the inferential contents of
conditional statements may be re-expressed to form arguments. In deciding
whether a passage contains an argument, you should look for three things:
 1) indicator words such as “therefore,” “since,” “because,” and so on;
 2) an inferential relationship between the statements; and
 3) typical kinds of non-arguments.
Types of Arguments: Deduction and Induction
A. Deductive Arguments: When the conclusion is claimed to follow
with strict certainty or necessity from the premises. It is claimed that if
the premises are true, then the conclusion must be true.
Example-1:All philosophers are critical thinkers.
Socrates is a philosopher.
Therefore, Socrates is a critical thinker.
Example-2: All African footballers are blacks.
Messi is an African footballer.
It follows that, Messi is black
• Inductive argument: It is claimed that if the premises are true, then it is
probable that the conclusion is true. It is the matter of probability, not
necessity.
Example-1:Most African leaders are blacks.
Mandela was an African leader.
Therefore, probably Mandela was black.
Example-2:Almost all women are mammals.
Hanan is a woman.
Hence, Hanan is a mammal.
 Recognizing Deductive and Inductive Argument.

To determining any argument as deductive or inductive considers the following

three factors;
• 1. The nature of link between premises and conclusion
• This means whether the connection between premises and conclusion is a
matter of “necessity” or “probability”.
• 2. The occurrence of special indicator words
• This means there are key words or phrases that belong either to inductive or
deductive arguments. Words like “certainly,’’ “necessarily,” ‘‘absolutely,’’ and
‘‘definitely’’ indicate that the argument should be taken as deductive. Whereas
words like, “probable” ‘‘improbable,’’ ‘‘plausible,’’ ‘‘implausible,’’ ‘‘likely,’’
‘‘unlikely,’’ and ‘‘reasonable to conclude” suggest that an argument is
inductive.
 3) The character or form of argumentation the arguers use.

Deductive Argument Forms:

 1. Argument based on mathematics: It s argument that conclusions depend
on some purely arithmetic or geometric computation or measurement.
 E.g. you can put two orange and three bananas in a bag and conclude that
the bag contains five fruits.
 2. Arguments based on definition: It is an argument in which the conclusion is claimed
to depend merely up on the definition of some words or phrase used in the premise or
conclusion. For example, one may argue that Angel is honest; it is follows that Angel
tells the truth. Or again, Kebede is a physician; therefore, he is a doctor.
3. Syllogistic arguments:Are arguments consisting of exactly two
premises and one conclusion. Syllogisms can be categorized into three
groups;
A. Categorical syllogism: is a syllogism in which the statement begins
with one of the words “all”, “no” and “some”. Example: All Egyptians are
Muslims. No Muslim is a Christian. Hence, no Egyptian is a Christian.
• B. Hypothetical syllogism: is a syllogism having a conditional statement
for one or both of its premises.
• E.g. If quartz scratches glass, then quartz is harder than glass. Quartz
scratches glass. Therefore, quartz is harder than glass.
C. Disjunctive syllogism: is a syllogism having a disjunctive statement. (I.e.
an “either … or” statement.) Example: Rewina is either Ethiopian or Eritrean.
Rewina is not Eritrean. Therefore, Rewina is Ethiopian.
Inductive Argument Forms
The following form of argumentation belongs to inductive arguments.
I.Prediction: - The argument in which the premises deal with some known
event in the present or past, and the conclusion moves beyond this event to
some event in the future. Example. “Yesterday, there was rainfall in our
city. Today also there is rainfall. Therefore, there will be rainfall tomorrow.”
2. An argument from analogy: It is an argument that depends on the existence
of an analogy or similarity between two things or state of affairs.
• Example : *The Encyclopedia Britannica has an article on Symbiosis.
• The Encyclopedia Americana, like the Britannica, is an excellent work.
Therefore, the Americana probably also has an article on Symbiosis.
3. An inductive generalization: it is an argument that proceeds from the
knowledge of a selected sample to some claim about the whole group. For
example, because three out of four people in a single prison are black, one
may conclude that three-fourth of prison populations are blacks.
4. An argument from authority: it is an argument in which the conclusions
rest upon a statement made by some presumed authority or witness. E.g The
person is guilty because an eyewitness testifies to that effect under oath. Or
all matters are made up of a small particles called “quarks” because the
University Professor said so.
5. Arguments based on sign: it is an argument that proceeds from the
knowledge of a certain sign to the knowledge of a thing or situation that the
sign symbolizes. For instance, one may infer that after observing ‘No
Parking’ sign posted on the side of a road, the area is not allowed for parking.
6. A causal inference: it is an argument which proceed from the knowledge
of a cause to the knowledge of an effect, or conversely, from the knowledge
of an effect to knowledge of a cause. For example, from the knowledge that a
bottle of water had been accidentally left in the freezer overnight, someone
might conclude that it had frozen (cause to effect).
 Evaluating Arguments

 Evaluating Deductive Arguments: Validity, Truth, and Soundness

Deduction and Validity

Valid deductive argument =If the premises do in fact support the conclusions.

is an argument such that if the premises are assumed true, it is impossible for the
conclusion to be false.
Invalid deductive argument= If the premises do not in fact support the
conclusions.
is an argument such that if the premises are assumed true, it is possible for the
conclusion to be false.
Example-1: Example-2:
 All men are mammals.  All philosophers are rational.
 All bulls are men.  Socrates was rational.
F Therefore, all bulls are mammals.
 Therefore, Socrates was a philosopher.

There is no middle ground between valid and invalid. An argument is either valid or invalid.

There is only an indirect relation between validity and truth.

There are four possibilities with respect to the truth or falsity of the premises and conclusion of a
given argument:
 1) True premises and True conclusion,
 2) True premises and False conclusion,
 3) False premises and True conclusion, and
 4) False premises and False conclusion.
Note that all of the above possibilities, except the second case (true premises and false
conclusion), allow for both valid and invalid arguments. That is, the second case does
not allow for valid arguments.

Validity and Truth Value

Possibility # 1: A combination of True premises and True conclusion (the first case)
allows for both valid and invalid arguments.

Example-1 (Valid): Example-2 (Invalid):

All women are mammals. (Tp) All philosophers are critical thinkers. (Tp)
My mother is a woman. (Tp) Plato was a critical thinker. (Tp)
Therefore, my mother is a mammal. (Tc) Therefore, Plato was a philosopher. (Tc)
Possibility # 2: A combination of True premises and false conclusion (the second
case) allows only for invalid arguments.

Example-1 (Invalid):
All biologists are scientists. (Tp)

John Nash was a scientist. (Tp)

Therefore, John Nash was a biologist. (Fc)

Any deductive argument having actually true premises and an actually false conclusion is
invalid

Possibility # 3: A combination of False premises and True conclusion (the third case)
allows for both valid and invalid arguments.
 Example-1 (Valid): Example-2 (Invalid):
All birds are mammals. (Fp) All birds are mammals. (Fp)
All women are birds. (Fp) All ostriches are mammals. (Fp)
Therefore, all women are mammals. (Tc) Therefore, all ostriches are birds. (Tc)

Possibility # 4: A combination of False premises and False conclusion (the fourth case) allows
for both valid and invalid arguments.
Example-1 (Valid):
• All Americans are Ethiopians. (Fp)
• All Egyptians are Americans. (Fp)
• Thus, all Egyptians are Ethiopians. (Fc)
Example-2 (Invalid):
• All birds are mammals. (Fp)
• All ants are mammals. (Fp)
In general, the basic idea of evaluating deductive argument, validity (valid and
invalid) is not something that is determined by the actual truth or falsity of the
premises and conclusion. Rather, validity is something that is determined by the
relationship between premises and conclusion.
Premises Conclusion Validity
True True Valid/invalid
True False Invalid
False True Valid/invalid
False False Valid/invalid

Deduction and Soundness

A sound argument is a deductive argument that is valid and has all true premises.
Unsound argument is a deductive argument that is either valid with one or more false
premises, or invalid, or both.
Sound Argument = A valid argument + All true premises

Evaluating Inductive Arguments: Strength, Truth, and Cogency

Induction and Strength

A strong inductive argument is an argument such that if the premises are assumed true, it
is improbable for the conclusion to be false. In such arguments, the conclusion follows
probably from the premises.
A weak inductive argument is an argument such that if the premises are assumed true, it is
probable for the conclusions to be false. In these arguments, the conclusion does not follow
Example-1:

• This barrel contains one hundred apples.

• Eighty apples selected at random were found tasty.

• Therefore, probably all one hundred apples are tasty.

 Example-2:

• This barrel contains one hundred apples.

• Three apples selected at random were found tasty.

• Therefore, probably all one hundred apples are tasty.

• The first example is strong argument, because the conclusion actually follows probably from the premises.
• The second example is weak argument, because the conclusion does not actually follow probably from the
premises, even though it is claimed to.
Strength and Truth Value

To be considered strong, an inductive argument must have a conclusion that is

more probable than improbable.
In inductive arguments, there is no absolutely strong nor absolutely weak
argument.
Strength and weakness are only indirectly related to the truth values of their
premises.
Strength or weakness of an inductive argument results not from the actual truth
or falsity of the premises and conclusion, but from the probabilistic support the
premises give to the conclusion.
Four possibilities the truth or falsity of the premises and conclusion of a given argument:

Premises Conclusion Strength

True True Strong/Weak
True False Weak
False True Strong/Weak
False False Strong/Weak
Note that all of the above possibilities, except the second case (true premises and false
conclusion), allow for both strong and weak arguments. That is, the second case does not
allow for strong arguments.

Any inductive argument having actually true premises and an actually false conclusion is
weak.
Induction and Cogency
• A cogent argument is an inductive argument that is strong and has all true
premises. Example: All previous American presidents were men.
Therefore, probably the next American president will be a man.
Uncogent argument is an inductive argument that is either strong with
one or more false premises, or weak, or both.
All the previous Ethiopian leaders were men.
Therefore, probably the next Ethiopian leader will be a man.
 CHAPTER THREE
LOGIC AND LANGUAGE

Philosophy of Language
What is Language?

Language is a body of standard meanings of words and the form of speech used as a means of
expressing the feeling, emotion, desire, thought etc in a consistent pattern of communication.

Acc. to semiotics, language is the mere manipulation and use of symbols in order to draw
attention to signified content.

What is Philosophy of Language?

• It is the reasoned inquiry into the origins of language, nature of meaning, the usage and
cognition of language, and the relationship between language and reality. In short Reasoned
inquiry into the nature, origins, and usage of language.
The Debates and History of Philosophy of Language

Its study began to play a more central role in Western philosophy in the late 19thand 20th Centuries.
Plato, Aristotle and the Stoics of Ancient Greece.
• Plato =names of things are determined by nature, with each phoneme (the smallest structural unit
that distinguishes meaning)
• Aristotle =meaning of a predicate (the way a subject is modified or described in a sentence)
• Stoic philosophers= important contributions to the analysis of grammar, distinguishing five parts
of speech: nouns, verbs, appellatives, conjunctions and articles.
Some Philosophical Approaches to the Nature of Meaning

• Two essentially different types of linguistic meaning:

• 1. conceptual meaning = definitions of words themselves, and the features of those definitions.
• 2. associative meaning = individual mental understandings of the speaker, and which may be
connotative, collective, social, affective, reflected or thematic.
Approaches to the philosophical nature of meaning.
1. Idea theories: meanings are purely mental contents provoked by signs. It is related
with British Empiricist traditions of John Locke, George Berkeley and David Hume.

2. Truth-conditional theories: meaning to be the conditions under which an expression

may be true or false. It goes back to Gottlob Frege.

3. Use theories: meaning to involve or be related to speech acts and particular

utterances. It is related with Ludwig Wittgenstein view of language.

4. Reference theories (or semantic externalism): meaning to be equivalent to those

things in the world that are actually connected to signs. Tyler Burge and Saul Kripke.

5. Verificationist theories: associate the meaning of a sentence with its method of

verification or falsification. adopted by the Logical Positivists of the early 20th century.
 6. Pragmatist theories: meaning or understanding of a sentence is determined by the
consequences of its application?

The Functions of Language: Cognitive and Emotive Meanings

• The twentieth-century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein thought the number of these
functions to be virtually unlimited.
•Ask questions Tell jokes
•Tell stories Flirt with someone
•Tell lies Give directions
•Guess at answers Sing songs
•Form hypotheses Issue commands
•Launch verbal assaults Greet someone and so on.
 Two linguistic functions are particularly important:
(1) Cognitive use: to convey information E.g: “Death penalty, which is legal
in thirty-six states, has been carried out most often in Georgia; however,
since 1977 Texas holds the record for the greatest number of executions.”
(2) Emotive use :to express or evoke feelings. E.g “Death penalty is a cruel
and inhuman form of punishment in which hapless prisoners are dragged
from their cells and summarily slaughtered only to satiate the bloodlust of a
vengeful public.” The cognitive meaning of such statements is a value claim. A
value claim is a claim that something is good, bad, right, wrong, or better,
worse, more important or less important than some other thing.
 Emotive Terminologies in Arguments
It allows the arguer to make value claims about the subject matter of the argument
without providing evidence, and it gives the argument a kind of steamroller quality.

Two problems that affect our cognitive use of language are vagueness and ambiguity.

Vague= It is hazy, obscure, and imprecise form of interpretations. E.g Words such as
‘‘love,’’ ‘‘happiness, “peace,’’ ‘‘excessive,’’ ‘‘fresh,’’ ‘‘rich,’’ ‘‘poor,’’ ‘‘normal,’’
‘‘conservative,’’ and ‘‘polluted’’ are vague.

Ambiguous= when it can be interpreted as having more than one clearly distinct
meaning in a given context. E.g: words such as ‘‘light,’’ ‘‘proper,’’ ‘‘critical,’’ ‘‘stress,’’
‘‘mad,’’ ‘‘inflate,’’ ‘‘chest,’’ ‘‘bank,’’ ‘‘sound,’’ and ‘‘race’’ can be used ambiguously.
Forms of Disputes in Logic: Verbal and Factual Disputes

(1) Verbal disputes=arise over the meaning of language. It can be resolved by

coming to agreement about how some words or phrases is to be understood.
Example-1: Kassa: Mrs. Zenebech abuses her children. And how do I know that? I
saw her spank one of her kids the other day after the kid misbehaved.
Jemal: Don’t be silly. Kids need discipline, and by disciplining her children,Mrs.
Zenebech is showing that she loves them.
• Here, the problem surrounds the vagueness of the words ‘‘abuse’’ and
‘‘discipline.’’
Example-2: Mullu: I’m afraid that Dagim is guilty of cheating in the exam. Last
night he confessed to me that he was sate closer to Tsedale, who is the most
excellent student in our class, and takes almost all answers from her.
Worku: No, you couldn’t be more mistaken. In this country, no one is guilty until
proven so in a court of law, and Dagim has not yet even been accused of
anything.
In this example, the dispute arises over the ambiguity of the word ‘‘guilty.’’/in
the moral sense &‘‘guilty.’’ in the legal sense.
(2) Factual disputes=arise over a disagreement about facts. If it is about
truth or falsity of claims. Example: Debebe: I know that Fisseha stole a
computer from the old school house. Aberash told me that she saw
Fisseha do it.
Maru: That’s ridiculous! Fisseha has never stolen anything in his life. Aberash
hates Fisseha, and she is trying to pin the theft on him only to shield her
criminal boyfriend. Here, the dispute centers on the factual issues of
 The Intension and Extension of Terms

A term is any word or arrangement of words that may serve as the subject
of a statement. Terms consist of proper names, common names, and
descriptive phrases.
• Proper Names Common Names Descriptive Phrases
• Abebe Animal First Prime Minister of
Ethiopia
• South Ethiopia Activity Author of Oromay
• The Ethiopian Parliament Person Those who study hard
• Girmaa Gamachuu House
• Words that are not terms include verbs, non-substantive adjectives,
adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and all non-syntactic arrangements of
words. E.g. Dictatorial above and beyond craves
Runs quickly moreover cabbages into again the forest

The meanings of terms have two types: intentional and extensional.

1) Intensional/connotation/meaning = consists of the qualities or

attributes that the term connotes. E.g ‘‘cat’’ consists of the attributes of
being furry, having four legs, moving in a certain way, emitting certain sounds,
and so on
2) Extensional/denotation/meaning = members of the class that the term denotes. E.g the
extensional meaning of “cat” consists of cats themselves- all the cats in the universe.

All terms have intentional meaning but they do not have extensional meaning . This because at
one time denoted actually existing entities, but today all such entities have perished. Such
terms are said to denote the empty (or ‘‘null’’) class, the class that has no members. Terms with
empty extension include ‘‘unicorn,’’ ‘‘leprechaun,’’ ‘‘gnome,’’ ‘‘elf,’’ and ‘‘griffin.

Intension determines extension. This is b/c the intensional meaning of a term serves as the
criterion for deciding what the extension consists of.
For example: The intension of the word ‘‘cat’’ serves as the criterion for determining what is and
what is not a member of the class of cats.
• One kind of term that raises problems for the intension-determines-extension rule is proper
names. For example, the name ‘‘Abebe’’ might not appear to have any intension, but it
denotes the person who has this name.
•Terms may be put in the order of increasing intension, increasing extension, decreasing
intension, and decreasing extension.

• Increasing intension= when each term in the series connotes more

attributes than the one preceding it. In other words, each term in the series is more
specific than the one preceding it. (A term is specific to the degree that it connotes
more attributes).

• Decreasing intension is the reverse of that of increasing

• Increasing extension= when each term in the series denotes a class
having more members than the class denoted by the term preceding it. In
other words, the class size gets larger with each successive term.
• Decreasing extension is the reverse of that of increasing
extension.
• Increasing intension: animal, mammal, feline, tiger
• Increasing extension: tiger, feline, mammal, animal
• Decreasing intension: tiger, feline, mammal, animal
• Decreasing extension: animal, mammal, feline, tiger
 Meaning, Types, and Purposes of Definitions

• Definitions

• A technical and structural organization of words / terms or phrases in

explaining the meaning of a given term.
• Group of words that assigns a meaning to some word or group of words.

• Consists of two parts: the definiendum and the definiens.

• Definiendum =word or group of words supposed to be defined

• Definiens = word or group of words that does the defining.

 Types and Purposes of Definitions
Definitions can be classified into five:
1)Stipulative Definitions: It assigns a meaning to a word for
the first time. It is usually important to replace a more complex expression
with a simpler one. It is needed for some new phenomenon or development :
E.g: When biologists cross-breed different species, and find a new species, they
need to give a new name for a newly discovered species. For example, when male
Horse and female Donkey cross-breed, a new offspring may result. Hokey/ when
male Tiger and female Lion cross-breed, a new offspring may result ‘‘Tigon’’
It is also important to set up secret codes. E.g: A secret code ‘Operation Sun set’
was the name given to the military victory of Ethiopian armed force against
Eritrea.
2. Lexical Definitions: It used to report the meaning that a word
already has in a language. Dictionary definitions are all instances
of it.

• in contrast with a stipulative definition, a lexical definition may be

true or false.
• It eliminates ambiguity (A word that can be interpreted in at least two ways in a
given context). E.g‘‘bank’’ can be used ambiguously. E.g ‘I walked to the bank’
Here, the word, ‘bank’ may mean either a financial organization or the slope
bordering a river.

3. Précising Definitions: is precise and a clear form of expression thing that

it is possible to tell about the applicability of the word.

Its purpose is to reduce the vagueness of a word.

A word is said to be vague if it is so imprecise and unclear that it is impossible
to tell about the applicability of the word. For instance, if legislation were
ever introduced to give direct financial assistance to the poor,…The definition
‘Poor’ means having an annual income of less than $4,000
• 4. Theoretical Definitions: Assigns a meaning to a word
by suggesting a theory that gives a certain characterization
to the entities that the term denotes. It is important at least for
three reasons.
• It assigns a meaning to a term.
• It gives the way of imagining (conceiving) a physical phenomenon.
• It suggests a deductive consequence.
• E.G ‘Force’, the mass and acceleration mentioned in Newton’s 3 rd Law of
Motion, expressed in the formula (F=Ma). This definition gives us the way of
viewing or conceiving what force, mass (M =F/A), and acceleration (A ‘F/M).
• 5.Persuasive Definitions: It used to persuade somebody to do or
believe something. Its purpose is to engender/give rise to a
favorable or unfavorable attitude toward what is denoted by the
definiendum. Its purpose is accomplished by assigning an
emotionally charged or value-laden meaning to a words.
influencing the attitudes of the reader/listener. Consider the
following examples of persuasive definitions.
• ‘‘Abortion’’ means the ruthless murdering of innocent human beings.
• ‘‘Abortion’’ means a safe and established surgical procedure whereby a woman
is relieved of an unwanted burden.
 Techniques of Definition
1.The Extensional (Denotative) Definitional Techniques

• Assigns a meaning to a term by indicating the members of the class that

the definiendum denotes.

• Three ways of indicating the members of a class:

1)Demonstrative (Ostensive) Definitions

• Pointing the members of the class

• Probably the most primitive form of definition.

• It differ from the other kinds of definitions in that the definiens is

constituted at least in part by a gesture- the gesture of pointing.
2. Enumerative Definitions
Assign a meaning to a term by naming the members of the class the term denotes.
•Example:

• “Actor’’ means a person such as Abebe Balicha, Samsom Taddesse, or Mahder

Assefa.

3. Definition by Subclass
Assigns a meaning to a term by naming subclasses of the class denoted by the
term.
• E.g. ‘‘Tree’’ means an oak, pine, elm, spruce, maple, and the like.=partial
• “Fictional work’’ means a poem, a play, a novel, or a short story.=complete
Extensional definitions are chiefly used as techniques for producing lexical and
stipulative definitions.
•All extensional definitions suffer serious deficiencies. For example:
 When we define the word ‘‘chair’’ by demonstration, if all the
chairs pointed to are made of wood, observers might get the idea
that ‘‘chair’’ means ‘‘wood’’ instead of something to sit on.
 When we define the word ‘‘actor’’ by enumeration, readers
/listeners might think that ‘‘actor’’ means ‘‘famous person’’- which
would include persons who are not actors.
 . When we define the word ‘‘tree’’ through a definition by subclass,
they might get the idea that ‘‘tree’’ means ‘‘firmly planted in the
ground,’’ which would also include the pilings of a building.
• Assigns a meaning to a word by indicating the qualities or
The Intensional (Connotative) Definitional Techniques

attributes that the word connotes.

• There are at least four strategies that may be used to indicate
the attributes/qualities that a word connotes.
1)Synonymous Definition
•is one in which the definiens is a single word that connotes the
same attributes as the definiendum- that the definiens is a
synonym of the word being defined. Definiendum=definies.

•Examples:
• “Physician” means doctor.
• “Observe “means see.
2. Etymological Definition
assigns a meaning to a word by disclosing the word’s ancestry in both its
own language and other languages.

For example, the English word ‘‘license’’ is derived from the Latin verb
licere, which means to be permitted.

• Have special importance for at least two reasons.

• 1. It conveys the word’s root meaning or seminal meaning from which all
other associated meanings are derived.
• 2. Is that if one is familiar with the etymology of one word, one often has
access to the meaning of an entire constellation of related words.
3. Operational Definition
Assigns a meaning to a word by specifying certain experimental
procedures that determine whether or not the word applies to a certain
thing.
•Examples:
• One substance is ‘‘harder than’’ another if and only if one scratches the
other when the two are rubbed together.
• A solution is an ‘‘acid’’ if and only if litmus paper turns red when dipped
into it.
• Operational definitions were invented for the purpose of tying down
relatively abstract concepts to the solid ground of empirical reality.
4. Definition by Genus and Difference
It is more generally applicable and achieves more adequate results
intensional definition.
In logic, ‘‘genus’’ simply means a relatively larger class, and ‘‘species’’
means a relatively smaller subclass of the genus.
Specific difference,’’ or ‘‘difference,’’ is the attribute or attributes that
distinguish the various species within a genus.
Genus =animal and species =mammal
A definition by genus and difference for the word ‘‘ice.’’
• Species Difference Genus
• “Ice” means frozen water
• It is the most effective of the intensional definitions for producing the five
kinds of definition discussed in the previous lesson.

• Synonymous definition may be used to produce only lexical definitions.

• Criteria for Lexical Definitions

• lexical definition is the most important and common type of definition that
we often use in our day-to-day life.
•Rule 1: Should Conform to the Standards of Proper Grammar.

•Rule 2: Should Convey the Essential Meaning of the Word Being Defined.

• A definition cannot be helpful if it fails to convey the essential meaning of

the definiendum.
•Rule 3: Should Be Neither Too Broad nor Too Narrow.

• E.g.1 ‘‘Bird’’ were defined as any warm-blooded animal having wings=

too broad because it would include bats, and bats are not birds.

• E.g.2‘‘Bird’’ were defined as any warm-blooded, feathered animal that

can fly=too narrow because it would exclude ostriches, which cannot fly.

• Rule 4: Should Avoid Circularity. E.g. “Science’’ means the activity

engaged in by scientists.
•Rule 5: Should Not Be Negative When It Can Be Affirmative.

• E.g. “Concord’’ means harmony.

• “Concord’’ means the absence of discord.
•Rule 6: Should Avoid Figurative, Obscure, Vague, or Ambiguous Language.
• A definition is figurative if it involves metaphors or tends to paint a
picture. E.g. “Camel’’ means a ship of the desert
• obscure if its meaning is hidden as a result of defective or inappropriate
language. One source of obscurity is overly technical language.
Compare the following two definitions:
• E.g. “Bunny’’ means a mammalian of the family Leporidae of the order
Lagomorpha whose young are born furless and blind.
• E.g. “Bunny’’ means a rabbit.

• vague if it lacks exactness or if its meaning is blurred- that is, if there

is no way of telling exactly what class of things the definiens refers to.
E.g. Democracy’’ means a kind of government where the people are in
control.

•Ambiguous if it lends itself to more than one distinct interpretation. E.g.

•Rule 7: Should Avoid Affective Terminology.

• E.g “Communism’’ means that ‘‘brilliant’’ invention of Karl Marx and other foolish
political visionaries in which the national wealth is supposed to be held in
common by the people.
•Rule 8: Should Indicate the Context to Which the Definiens Pertains.

•This rule applies to any definition in which the context of the definiens is
important to the meaning of the definiendum. Examples: “Strike’’ means (in
baseball) a pitch at which a batter swings and misses.
•‘‘Strike’’ means (in bowling) the act of knocking down all the pins with the
first ball of a frame.
•‘‘Strike’’ means (in fishing) a pull on a line made by a fish in taking the bait.