Module PHIL1031: INTRODUCTION TO LOGIC

Department: Philosophy

PHIL1031: INTRODUCTION TO LOGIC

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• At least one other module in Philosophy.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To provide students of philosophy with logical tools they need when working in the more formal parts of the discipline.
• To explore some basic issues arising from the relationship between formal and natural languages, and the application of logical methods to philosophical problems.

Content

• Introduction: logic, arguments and validity
• Truth-functional logic: Truth-functional connectives, formalisation, truth tables; assessing truth-funtional validity using truth tables and truth trees; truth-functional consistency and inconsistency; tautologies and contradictions; truth-functional adequacy.
• First-order logic: Limits to truth-functional logic; predicates, variables and quantifiers; relations; syntax for first-order logic, structure and tree proofs; semantics for first-order logic, models and counterexamples in first-order logic.
• First-order logic with identity: Inferences involving identity; tree rules for identity; functions; identity as part of logic.
• Philosophy of logic and philosophical logic: Empty names, non-being and Russell's theory of descriptions; conditionals (indicative, counterfactual and subjunctive conditionals), paradoxes of material implication; alternative logics; semantic and set-theoretic paradoxes.

Learning Outcomes

• By the end of this module, students will have knowledge and understanding of (i) relations between the central concepts of logic: truth, validity and consistency; (ii) the properties and limitations of systems of logic including truth-functional logic, first-order logic, and first-order logic with identity; (iii) basic philosophical issues arising form the application of classical propositional and predicate logics to ordinary-language inferences, and some examples of the application of formal methods to philosophical problems.

• By the end of this module, students will have a practical ability to deploy formal methods, provided by truth-functional logic, first-order logic, and first-order logic with identity, for assessing validity, consistency and logical equivalence in particular cases.

• By the end of this module, students will be able to:
• express themselves clearly and succinctly in writing
• comprehend complex ideas, propositions and theories
• defend their opinions by reasoned argument
• tackle problems in a clear-sighted and logical fashion

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Lectures deliver basic module-specific information, and provide a framework for further study.
• Tutorials provide opportunities for students to test their own understanding through tutorial exercises.
• Guided reading provides a structure within which students exercise and extend their abilities to make use of available learning resources.
• Tutorial exercises provide the opportunity for students to test their knowledge and understanding of the module content, and their ability to apply logical concepts and methods, uninhibited by the need for summative assessment.
• Summative exercises test students' knowledge and understanding of the module content, and their ability to apply logical concepts and methods.
• The unseen examination tests students' overall knowledge and understanding of the module content at the end of the module, and their ability to bring it to bear on new problems under pressure of time.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Weekly tutorial exercises.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University