PHIL 1813 - Critical Thinking

The verb ‘to argue’ comes to us from a Latin root that had to do with making clear. Current usage associates the word ‘argument’ both with reasoning and conflict. In every part of human activity arguments are brought to bear in support or critique of positions and points of view. Because there are many ways of understanding those human interactions gathered together by the word, ‘argument,’ this course will endeavor to cast some light on what an argument is and what the relationship between argument and truth might be. Primarily we will engage in extensive practice analyzing arguments. Throughout the semester we will be reading everything from Plato to short samples of writing taken from newspapers, magazines and the Internet. There will be a very brief introduction to formal logic and classical rhetoric, but the course will move quickly towards help students learn how to analyze, evaluate, and construct arguments they are likely to encounter in their future university studies and in their everyday lives.

Credit Hours
3.0
Satisfies a Requirement
Humanities
Area
V

Go Beyond!

PHIL 1813 - Critical Thinking