Module manager: Professor John Divers
Email: j.divers@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable
Year running 2020/21
PHIL1008 Introduction to Logic
This module is approved as a discovery module
In philosophy (as in everyday life) we spend a lot of time thinking about the best way to resolve problems and persuading others of our solutions. This module develops tools that allow us to do so in a way that is clearer, more precise, and more effective. The starting point is the notion of a valid argument: an argument that guarantees that, if the premises are true, the conclusion is true. You will learn how to reconstruct arguments that you find in texts; how to recognize common fallacies; how to translate sentences in English into a notation that makes it easy to test for validity. In addition, you will learn a toolkit of basic distinctions that are often used in philosophy such as that between a priori and a posteriori claims. Finally, you will learn about some widespread but mistaken patterns of thinking (so-called cognitive illusions) that often affect ordinary reasoning.
On completion of this module, students should have a basic ability to:
• Reconstruct arguments in a wide range of philosophical texts in premise-conclusion form.
• Employ the notions of soundness and validity while analysing an argument.
• Use truth tables for classical propositional logic and formalize English sentences into first-order classical predicate logic.
• Master some basic elements of probabilistic reasoning.
By the end of the module, students will be able to:
• display an understanding of the methods and tools studied;
• analyse an argument, formalise the relevant claims in first order logic, and assess it for validity;
• use basic probabilistic reasoning.
Topics covered will include:
• Argument analysis and reconstruction; the notions of validity and soundness.
• Truth tables for propositional logic.
• Formalisation of English sentences into first order predicate logic.
• Basic probabilistic reasoning.
Other topics covered might include:
• Basic distinctions that are part of the philosophical toolkit: a priori/a posteriori, analytic/synthetic.
• Features of relations: reflexivity, transitivity, symmetry.
• Cognitive illusions, such as e.g. the base rate fallacy or the conjunction fallacy.
The module leader may choose to focus on one topic from each subfield, or to cover more topics in less detail
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 18 | 1 | 18 |
| Tutorial | 8 | 1 | 8 |
| Tutorial | 9 | 1 | 9 |
| Private study hours | 165 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 35 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
Via tutorial participation and mid-term assessment.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Assignment | Argument Analysis - commentary and analysis on prose selections of argumentation | 40 |
| Assignment | Logic & reasoning exercises - short answer questions | 60 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated.
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 8/10/2020
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team