Propositional Logic
Philosophy 111, Section 1
Drexel University
Spring 2015
CAT 77
TTH 2:00 – 3:20 PM
Dr. Patrick Denehy
Email: pdenehy@drexel.edu
Office: TBD
Hours: TTH 6:30-7:30 PM & TH 1-2 PM
Make an appointment
Course Website: www.patrickdenehy.com
Generic Course Description
An introduction to the fundamental concepts of symbolic logic: argument,
validity, soundness, provability, completeness, consistency, decidability,
entailment, logical equivalence, logical truth, logical contradiction. Covers truthfunctional connectives, rules of formation and translation, and rules of inference.
Proof techniques studies include natural deduction, truth-tables, and/or truthtrees.
Our Course
We will do all of the above and a little more. The last third of the course will
discuss some relevance of symbolic logic for other fields, including philosophy
of mind and political economy. We will also discuss some limits to
propositional logic in particular, thereby previewing the development of
predicate logic, and some potential limits to symbolic logic more generally.
Technology Policy
Avoid cell phone use and Internet-browsing temptations. Most students desire a
classroom free of needless distractions, so this is not just for your sake, but for
the sake of your peers. I may take off points if your inattention becomes
problematic – and this is entirely up to my discretion.
Required Text
You need to acquire specific material, namely chapters 1, 6, and 7 from Patrick
Hurley’s A Concise Introduction to Logic: 11th Edition. Note that this is NOT
the newest edition of the book. This hardly matters. Propositional logic hasn’t
changed in the last couple of years, and this old edition is cheaper anyway.
Your best bet is to purchase individual electronic chapters from this website:
www.cengagebrain.com, or www.cengagebrain.com/shop/isbn/9780840034175
(11th Edition). Chapter 1 is free. The other chapters should be $8.50 each.
All other material will be made available to you electronically or in class.
1
Learning Goals
 Exercise an introductory level competence in structuring their ideas
coherently and expressing them in ways that are truthful and fair in both
written and in spoken forms.
 Exercise an introductory level competence in employing the skills of logical
analysis and appreciating the value and the conditions for rational
argumentation, reasonable dialogue, and effective debate, particularly with
regard to deductive and formal reasoning.
 Begin to think critically and independently and reason through complex
formal problems.
 Begin to understand some of the main questions, problems, concepts, and
distinctions that belong to the study of deductive formal reasoning and what
research in this area is concerned with.
Academic Freedom
Freedom to teach and freedom to learn are inalienable facets of not only
academic freedom, but freedom in any society that purports to be democratic.
Drexel’s policies:
http://www.drexel.edu/provost/policies/academic_freedom.asp
Disability Accommodation
Students with disabilities requesting accommodations and services at Drexel
University need to present a current Accommodation Verification Letter (AVL)
to faculty (i.e. Pat Denehy) before accommodations can be made. AVL’s are
issued by the Office of Disability Services (ODS). For additional information,
visit the ODS website at http://www.drexel.edu/oed/disabilityresources/, or
contact the Office for more information - 215-895-1401 (V), 215-895-2299
(TTY), or disability@drexel.edu.
Academic Integrity
Plagiarism will result in failing assignments or the entire course. Other forms of
dishonesty, such as cheating or lying about your circumstances in order to gain
an unfair advantage, will suffer equally merciless fates. Drexel’s policies:
http://www.drexel.edu/provost/policies/academic_dishonesty.asp and
http://www.drexel.edu/studentlife/studenthandbook/handbook.html#judicial and
http://www.drexel.edu/studentlife/judicial/honesty.html.
Course Drop Policy
Just in case: http://www.drexel.edu/provost/policies/course_drop.asp
Assignments and Grading
The grading schema is arranged to reward sustained effort and performance.
Please take this into account because falling behind or prolonged procrastination
on assignments will cause your grade to suffer in this course.
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Participation
Workshops (10)
Exam #1
Exam #2
Exam #3
Total
20 points
40 p
10 p
20 p*
10 p
100 p
* Note that Exam #2 is worth more than the other exams.
2
Participation
Attendance is mandatory. You are permitted 2 unexcused absences without
penalty. After that, I will reduce your grade by 3 points for each absence. I will
granted excused absences only for legitimate and documented reasons, and only
within two weeks of the relevant absence. Specifically, I will not accept excuses
late in the term for classes earler in the term outside the two-week window.
Workshops (and extra credit)
I will divide the class into different teams with roughly equal numbers. Many
days, logic problems will be assigned to each group. Frequently, there will be
two goals for each workshop.
Goal 1: Finish the set of problems before the end of class. Mandatory.
Goal 2: Finish the second set of problems before the end of class for extra credit.
Optional.
Two things to note regarding absences on workshop days. First, if you are
absent, you must make up the set of problems within one week. However, you
will not receive full credit even for perfect solutions. Second, you must be in
class to earn extra credit; absent team members miss out on the opportunity. It
is unlikely that other extra credit will be offered.
There are at least three purposes to group work: to show me you have learned
new material throughout the week; to collaborate with others and check each
others’ work; and to prepare for the exams. Also, your participation grade is
affected by your participation in the group effort.
Exams
The exams will demand that you understand the material and are able to apply it
effectively within a limited timeframe. If you are going to miss an exam, you
must notify me via email no later than the beginning of that exam period. If you
do so, I will arrange a make-up exam time. If you do not notify me in advance,
you will receive a zero on that exam. Additionally, even if you notify me in
advance, I may deduct some points from your exam for the sake of fairness.
Exam #1 will cover chapter 6 and any other readings discussing during that
segment (probably one). Exam #2 will be cumulative, covering both chapters 6
and 7, with an emphasis on the latter. Exam #3 will be different than the
previous two because, instead of focusing solely on symbolic logic, we will
discuss these concepts in relation to other fields. This exam will require more
by way of short essay questions and answers.
Caveat
I reserve the right to modify the syllabus, schedule, and grading schema as the
circumstances dictate. Any significant changes will be relayed to you in
advance.
3
Schedule
The numbered readings refer to the Patrick Hurley chapters and sections.
Week
1
10
Date
3/31
4/2
4/7
4/9
4/14
4/16
4/21
4/23
4/28
4/30
5/5
5/7
5/12
5/14
5/19
5/21
5/26
5/28
6/2
Day
T
TH
T
TH
T
TH
T
TH
T
TH
T
TH
T
TH
T
TH
T
TH
T
11
6/4
Exam week
TH
TBD
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Text/Event
Syllabus; Group Problem
6.1 & 6.2; Workshop #1
6.3 & 6.4; Workshop #2
6.5 & 6.6; Workshop #3
1.2 (Nec. & Suff. conditions only); Review
Exam #1
7.1; Workshop #4
7.2; Workshop #5
7.3; Workshop #6
7.4; Workshop #7
7.5; Workshop #8
7.6; Workshop #9
7.7; Workshop #10
Review
Exam #2
Crane, Ch. 1
Crane, Ch. 3
Sandel, Ch. 1
Culler, "Performative Language"
Carroll, "What the Tortoise Said to
Achilles"
Exam #3
4