1. The purpose of an argument
An argument in philosophy is a tool used for reasoning. Arguments are used in
everyday life to support our beliefs and ideas.
An argument consists of the reasons we put forward for holding a particular belief
to be true or for refuting a belief (i.e. Showing why it cannot be true).
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In philosophy an argument is not a heated exchange of words between two or more
people.
Neither is it an expression of my emotions and feelings on an issue.
Within philosophy to argue can mean one of two things two things:
1. To put forward reasons for holding a particular belief or idea to be true.
or
2. To put forward reasons why a particular belief or idea should be rejected.
We need to be able to identify or spot arguments at a glance
2. The distinction between statements and arguments
 Arguments are made up from statements (sometimes called ‘claims’ or
‘propositions’).
It is important to be able to identify statements in an argument
What are the characteristics of sentences that are statement?
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Statements assert that something is the case; they say something that correctly
describes how things are or are not.
Statements can either be true or false. Sometimes we cannot tell which.
Example:
Apples are used to make cider
In this case this statement is true. Apples we know are used in cider making.
Someone though may not know this, and be uncertain whether it is a true or false
statement. What makes it a statement though is that it can either be true or
false.
Example; I think apples are good.
This is not a statement. It is not because it is neither true nor false it is just an
expression of my taste. The sentence only expresses my opinion about apples.
SO NOT ALL SENTENCES ARE STATEMENTS
It is important to remember that attempting to state facts is not the only role that
language plays. We use sentences in many different ways here are some.
We use
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language for the following:
Making assertions or statements (‘The door is open’)
Commands or imperatives (‘Open the door’)
Questions (What time is it?)
Expression of emotion or feeling (‘That’s lovely’)
ONLY SENTENCES THAT ARE STATEMENTS ARE USED IN PHILOSOPHICAL
ARGUMENTS. BECAUSE ONLY STATEMENTS CAN BE TRUE OR FALSE.
To test if a sentence is a statement or not just ask the following question.
Is this the kind of sentence that could be true or false?
It is also important to remember that it is possible to express statements in different
ways, using different words. But still to be making the same point, or stating the same
thing.
Example:
The Prime minister is visiting America today
or
Tony Blair is visiting the United States today
Denny High is an educational establishment in Falkirk
District
or
Denny High is a school in Falkirk District
When looking at sentences (statements) we need to check if they are making the same
point.
When examining a statement we need to ask
WHAT POINT IS THE STATEMENT MAKING?
IS THE STATEMENT TRUE OR FALSE?
Is it true that Tony Blair is visiting America today?
Is it true that Denny High is a school in the Falkirk District?
SUMMARY
THINK OF AN ARGUMENT AS A SERIES OF STATEMENTS
WHICH COULD BE TRUE OR FALSE, LINKED TOGETHER IN AN
ATTEMPT TO DEMONSTRATE OR PROVE THAT ANOTHER CLAIM
OR STATEMENT (WHICH WE CALL THE CONCLUSION) IS TRUE.
An argument can be said to be a proof that a statement is true
Statements are put forward in support of a particular claim which itself is a
statement. If the statements put forward in support are true then the claim will
be true.
Statements used in arguments assert that something is true. The argument itself
is the proof that a statement is true based on these assertions called premises.
Example
Premise 1 - All bachelors are unmarried (true assertive statement 1)
Premise 2 - John is a bachelor (true assertive statement 2)
Conclusion – Therefore John is unmarried (true assertive statement /
conclusion)
The claim we are trying to show is true is referred to as the conclusion
A philosophical argument either tries to support a claim using reasons called premises, or
tries to refute a claim using premises. When we reach a conclusion based on the premises,
then we are said to infer (or deduce or draw) the conclusion.
Point to Note
In ordinary everyday language when we use the word ‘infer’ we often just mean that we
dimply. imply something. In this usage to imply simply means that you suggest or hint at
something. When you use the word ‘infer’ in critical thinking you are saying that in the
argument you have proved the conclusion to be true.
THE CONCLUSION OF AN ARGUMENT IS THE POINT THAT THE
ARGUMENT IS MAKING. THE POINT THAT THE USER OF THE
ARGUMENT WANTS THE HEARER TO ACCEPT. THE STATEMENTS OF
THE ARGUMENT ARE PUT FORWARD TO SHOW THAT THE
STATEMENT WHICH FORMS THE CONCLUSION IS INFACT TRUE.
The conclusion is the point or the statement that is being demonstrated to be true
based on the premises.
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This takes the form of a statement
Conclusions usually begin with the word ‘Therefore’.
Example: Therefore Capital punishment should be banned
Example: It follows that euthanasia should not be legalized
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The conclusion is inferred from premises
The conclusion is a statement which is regarded as true
on the basis of the given premises of the argument.
Examples: Therefore it is inferred that God exists
Example:
On the basis of this it is clear that girls are more intelligent than boys
In a formal philosophical argument, the premises are set out and the argument ends with
the conclusion. But not all arguments are set out in a formal way. People in everyday life put
forward arguments about all kinds of topics, and they are not set out in a formal way. The
conclusion may not even come at the end. It could be stated at the beginning or in the
middle.
In an everyday argument you need to spot the conclusion.
There are certain key words which indicate the statement that forms the conclusion.
These words are:
‘this shows that’
infer’
‘therefore’
‘we can conclude from this that’
‘thus’
‘this demonstrates that’
‘we can conclude’
‘it follows from this’
‘we can
3. The way arguments are structured
So far we have said that statements are put forward to support a claim which itself is a
statement which we call the conclusion. In an argument we call the supporting statements
premises. In a debate about something or if someone questions someone’s idea they may say
something like - “And what are the premises upon which this claim is based?”
Premises – An argument is constructed from a series of true statements called premises.
 An argument can have any number of premises
 Not all the premises need to be true for an argument to be successful.
Hidden premises
It is common in everyday arguments for some premises to remain un-stated because it is
obvious and is accepted by everyone. These are what we all hidden premises. When
evaluating an argument it is important to spot any hidden premises that are being used.
examples of the use of a hidden premise
Example 1
P1 Killing is wrong
c. Guns should be banned
The hidden premise used here is – hp2 Guns are used to kill people
Example 2
P1 Either the cat or the dog ate the steak that was in the kitchen
c. It was that crazy dog that ate the steak
The hidden premise used in this argument is - hp2 It was not the cat that ate the steak
Example 3
P1 Either we ban immigrants coming into our country or we increase our taxes to pay
for them.
c. Therefore we should ban immigrants coming into our country
The hidden premise used in this argument is – hp2 We do not want to increase our taxes
The conclusion - Is the point or the statement that is being demonstrated to be true
based on the premises.
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This takes the form of a statement
Conclusions usually begin with the word ‘Therefore’
What makes an effective argument?
FOR AN ARGUMENT TO WORK OR BE EFFECTIVE THERE NEEDS TO BE
GOOD CONNECTIONS OR LINKAGES BETWEEN THE PREMISES AND
THE CONCLUSION.
This means that it is fairly obvious what the presenter of the argument is
saying and the way the premises of the argument relate well to each other.
An example of good connections:
All men are mortal
John is a man
Therefore John is mortal
An example of poor connections
Pigs are animals
Flowers grow in gardens
Flowers need to be watered