A Concise Introduction to Logic

Abstract

Concise Introduction to Logic is an introduction to formal logic suitable for undergraduates taking a general education course in logic or critical thinking, and is accessible and useful to any interested in gaining a basic understanding of logic. This text takes the unique approach of teaching logic through intellectual history; the author uses examples from important and celebrated arguments in philosophy to illustrate logical principles. The text also includes a basic introduction to findings of advanced logic. As indicators of where the student could go next with logic, the book closes with an overview of advanced topics, such as the axiomatic method, set theory, Peano arithmetic, and modal logic. Throughout, the text uses brief, concise chapters that readers will find easy to read and to review.

Includes bibliographical references (page 209).

Developing a precise language -- "If…then…." and "It is not the case that…." -- Good arguments -- Proofs -- "And" -- Conditional derivations -- "Or" -- Reductio ad absurdum -- "… if and only if …", using theorems -- Summary of propositional logic -- Names and predicates -- "All" and "some" -- Reasoning with quantifiers -- Universal derivation -- Relations, functions, identity, and multiple quantifiers -- Summary of first order logic -- Some advanced topics in logic.