Assignment Paper

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Introduction
Remember – your actual journal entry should be somewhat brief; most of your time should be spent thinking
about the questions asked and the issues raised. Your thoughts should then be distilled into a mini-argument
that will respond affirmatively to the four tests for evaluating arguments: truthfulness of premises, logical
strength, relevance, and non-circularity.
Instructions
For this journal assignment, briefly answer each of the following prompts:
Inference: The differing meanings of “valid inference” and “warranted inference” are closely related to the
differing purposes of deductive and inductive arguments – the purpose of deductive being to prove; the
purpose of inductive to make the conclusion most probable.
Look up the words “valid” and “warranted.” Each of these words, you will find, has what is known as a lexicaldefinition – that is just the dictionary definition of the word. Words also have a certain connotations – meanings
that go beyond their lexical definitions; associated ideas and concepts – think of terms such a “fur baby” as the
name for a pet.
Briefly discuss how the lexical definitions and connotations of “valid” and “warranted” can help us understand
the differing purposes of deductive and inductive arguments.
Fallacies: In Section 8.2, the text states that there are “fallacious argument templates” (Facione & Gittens, p.
167) and then gives a number of examples. The authors further state: “Analysis of the meanings of the terms
used and the grammatical rules of the language reveal the source of error” (p.167).
Choose one of the fallacies in this section, such as Denying the Antecedent or False Classification and pair it
with the valid argument template. For example, if you choose Denying the Antecedent, the valid argument
template will be Denying the Consequent. False Classification would pair with one of the fallacies in Reasoning
About Classes of Objects.
Explain, in your own words, how the fallacy is revealed through analysis of the valid argument template. Think
of it this way – if you know how the heart works, you will know that certain malfunctions will prevent it from
working. For example, if you know that the coronary arteries supply the heart with blood, then you can reason
that a blockage will stop that vital flow. So this journal prompt asks you to explain, in your own words, how one
of the valid argument templates work – and how that exposes the fallacy connected with that type of argument.
Civic Responsibility: At the end of Chapter 9 there is a Bonus Exercise that asks you to research and analyze
the 2009 debate over the healthcare public option. If you were actually to complete that exercise, it would take
quite a bit of time and effort.
Do you think that completing such an exercise would be time well spent or time wasted? If well-spent, why? If
time wasted, why?
Is there any issue on which you think a comparable amount of time and effort would be worthwhile?
As a critical thinker, do you believe that citizens have an obligation to be informed on topics of current interest?
If yes, why, if no, why not?
If you include references to outside sources (beyond the textbook), make sure you cite them properly.