Saylor Academy - PHIL102 Final Study Questions and Answers

Saylor Academy - PHIL102 Final Study Questions and Answers Persuasive Definition - ANSWER -Definition aiming to persuade the listener towards a specific interpretation evaluation criteria for a reportive definition - ANSWER -good: if it accurately reflects the current usage of a term by being neither too broad nor too narrow. evaluation criteria for a stipulative definition - ANSWER -good if it's not: a) circular: defines the term in question with the very term itself. Ex: defining "painkiller" as "that which kills pain" does not provide new information. b) inconsistent: presents incompatible ideas. Ex: defining "cat" as "a creature that meows but is silent", is inconsistent c) obscure: unclear. Ex: defining "sprint" as "a short race" is unclear, since "short" is vague. Factual Dispute - ANSWER -Disagreement involving facts Verbal Dispute - ANSWER -Misunderstanding due to vague or ambiguous terms Sufficient Condition - ANSWER -guarantees an event Antecedent - ANSWER -- Word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun - sufficient condition ex: "If it is a dog, then it is an animal" > - Being a dog is sufficient for being an animal. - We can also say that without "it" being an animal, it can't be a dog. - So, the claim that being a dog is a sufficient condition, and that being an animal is a necessary condition. Necessary Condition - ANSWER -Condition essential for the occurrence of another event Consequent - ANSWER -- Outcome of the hypothetical condition - necessary condition ex: "If it is a dog, then it is an animal" > - Being a dog is sufficient for being an animal. - We can also say that without "it" being an animal, it can't be a dog. - So, the claim that being a dog is a sufficient condition, and that being an animal is a necessary condition. Obscure sentence - ANSWER -sentence that lacks clarity. It can be ambiguous, vague, or incomplete ambiguous - ANSWER -multiple determinate meanings are possible because a word in the sentence has multiple determinate meanings Lexical Ambiguity - ANSWER -Word with two or more meanings. Ex: pen - writing instrument, pen - place where pigs live Referentially Ambiguous - ANSWER -Sentence where a word does not explicitly refer. Ex: Person A and Person B got into the car and they turned on the air conditioning Syntactically Ambiguous - ANSWER -Sentence's grammatical structure is unclear, words have multiple determinate meanings. Ex: Politicians are frightening people Vagueness - ANSWER -Indefiniteness, uncertainty. Meanings are indeterminate. Ex: Dinner will be done in a while Incompletely Expressed Idea - ANSWER -When we find the need to fill in conceptual gaps Ex: Will this test be like the last one? Distortions of Meaning - ANSWER -Can result in erroneously positive or negative disposition Reification - ANSWER -Viewing an abstract concept as if it were a concrete thing. Examples: icon like lady with a scale represents justice Category Mistake - ANSWER -- Attributing a property to something that could not possibly have that property. - instance of reification Ex: Comparing apples and oranges and placing apples in the 'citrus' category. Poor philosophical argumentation - ANSWER -occurs most blatantly when the arguer distorts, rather than investigates in search of truth. Premises - ANSWER -The reasons presented to persuade someone that a conclusion is true or probably true. Conclusion - ANSWER -A judgment based on the information obtained Valid Argument - ANSWER -A deductive argument that does provide logically conclusive support for its conclusion Invalid Argument - ANSWER -A deductive argument that does not offer logically conclusive support for the conclusion Contradiction - ANSWER -A statement that is the opposite of another statement Sound Argument - ANSWER -A valid argument with true premises Standard Form - ANSWER -Organizing your argument by writing out the premises and conclusion in list form makes the structure clearer Counterexample - ANSWER -An example used to support a claim or statement that is the opposite of another claim or statement Truth Value - ANSWER -The truth or falsity of a statement Reductio Ad Absurdum - ANSWER -A disproof by showing that the consequences of the proposition are absurd Modus Ponens - ANSWER -If P then Q; P; Therefore Q Modus Tollens - ANSWER -If P then Q; Not Q; Therefore not P Hypothetical Syllogism - ANSWER -If P then Q; If Q then R; Therefore if P then R Disjunctive Syllogism - ANSWER -P or Q; Not P; Therefore Q Constructive Dilemma - ANSWER -If A then B, and, if C then D; Either A or C; Either B or D Hidden/Implicit Assumption - ANSWER -An illogical conclusion drawn from unsupported evidence Deductive Argument - ANSWER -An argument that reasons from known premises to an inevitable conclusion Inductive Arguments - ANSWER -Arguments whose reasons lead to probable conclusions Probability - ANSWER -Likelihood of a specific event occurring Inductive Reasoning - ANSWER -Reasoning from specific facts to general principles Analogical Reasoning - ANSWER -Comparing two similar cases to infer truth for the second Argument Map - ANSWER -Visual diagram showing how argument premises lead to conclusion Strong Argument - ANSWER -Premises true, conclusio