For an argument to be valid it must pass these three tests; the premise must be true, the premise must be more plausible than the conclusion, and the argument must be valid and not ridiculous, as some arguments sometimes turn out. All of the tests stand on their own legs and each is very important to follow through with a valid argument. An example of this method could be the following; all doctors are smart, my neighbor Jim is a doctor, and there for Jim is smart. Does it pass the three tests for this argument to be valid? Let's see!
Does the argument have a premise that is plausible?
Yes, because to be a doctor you must go through several years of college and do well, one must be able to pass multiple state board tests, as well as do a lot of reading and memorization. All of this meaning that one must be intelligent to be a doctor.
Is the premise more probable than the conclusion?
Yes, the premise is that to be a doctor you must be smart, this is true because of all of the schooling, preparation, memorization, learning, and training a doctor must go through to become a doctor. It cannot be proven that my neighbor Jim is smart because he is a doctor, but doctors are smart people and this can be assumed that Jim is therefore smart as well.
Is the argument strong?
Yes, I think most would agree that doctors are smart because of all of the schooling they must go through. I also think most would agree that all of the tests and medical school can be grueling and one must be smart to pass all of the tests and receive a PhD.
No comments:
Post a Comment