Blog

One of the advantages of learning logic and critical thinking is that it can benefit all areas of one’s life. The ability to research all sides before arriving at a position on an issue, the humility to consider opposing points of view in a fair-minded way, the wisdom to evaluate the quality of reasoning for and against positions, the capacity to recognize and avoid logical fallacies, and the skill to be able to construct effective reasoning all can benefit us by helping us to arrive at positions that are most justified by the evidence (and therefore most likely to be true).These habits, when applied, can also help us to make decisions based on a more comprehensive understanding of different points of view, to better appreciate other people’s perspectives, to be clearer and more persuasive in our reasoning, and to avoid making decisions that are not rationally justified. The discussion this week is designed to assist us in this process of applying critical thinking to our daily lives.Prepare: Watch the following “For Argument’s Sake (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.” from Daniel H. Cohen, and review “Confronting Disagreement by Seeking Truth” from Chapter 9.4 Take a look as well at the required resources from this week and make sure that you have completed “The Graduate (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.” interactive scenario.Reflect: Think about experiences you have had that involved conflicts with others. What was the genesis of the conflict? Would it have been possible for the exchange to be more productive? Think about why disagreements often lead to fights rather than opportunities to learn from each other.Write: Answer the following questions: What is an area of life in which you have experienced people treating arguments as a kind of war? What were the consequences of that approach? What is an area of life in which you have experienced people treating arguments as a kind of performance? Was that approach effective? Why is it better to treat arguments as a venue for learning? What traits of character does it require to be able to live according to that approach? What benefits can it have in our lives to take that approach? Provide a specific example.Guided Response: Guided Response: Post a minimum of three responses, two of which must be to your classmates. The third response could be to a classmate or your instructor. Be sure to post on three separate days throughout the week to promote further engagement and discussion. Each response should be a minimum 75 of words.For example, you might want to share an example in your own life that relates to the experiences they shared. You might offer other ways in which we can learn to embody the kind of humility that the speaker advocates. Let your response further the goal of the learning from arguments.Here’s an example post for this week’s discussion forum.What is an area of life in which you have experienced people treating arguments as a kind of war? What were the consequences of that approach?Examples for the wartime approach to arguments are easy enough to find and surprisingly occur in our commonest of relationships, i.e. familial and work related. The approach is common enough over discussion of politics and religion, and I recall an argument I recently observed between two friends over the question whether they felt our current president was the best pick for the job. One friend said he was not qualified while my other friend said that the alternative pick was worse…and I noticed that neither side considered any evidence to support the opposing claims. In looking at the exchange as a war that had to be ‘won,’ each person entered the discussion with a commitment that was probabl

y too strong since it actually obstructed communication. I would have loved to hear the supporting reasons to think that someone is not qualified to function as a chief executive and why the alternative was even worse off, but no such information was presented. I don’t actually think it would have mattered either, because the argument was approached as a ‘battlefield’ to begin with, and this means that neither side wants to lose anyways. The stakes in wars are high, life threatening, and this unrealistic presentation of the costs of learning through an argumentative exchange of ideas is positively misleading.What is an area of life in which you have experienced people treating arguments as a kind of performance? Was that approach effective?The most recent display of an argument as performance I witnessed was the presidential debate between Trump and Biden.Both sides began interrupting each other and talking over each other out of place, and I eventually had to turn off the TV because it was poorly moderated. I just couldn’t follow it…imagine my pain as a logic instructor! We aim to be fair, formal, and polite in our exchanges in the class, yet the debate was a mockery of what we have been learning. It was presented as more of a spectator gladiatorial sport, or a boxing match!The end result of this argument as performance approach was that it lost viewers and so obstructed communication once again.Why is it better to treat arguments as a venue for learning?It is better to treat arguments as a venue for learning because we allow ourselves to learn from our own mistakes easier. This results from the openness to communication we take with the approach. We rarely have ‘everything figured out’ when we begin researching a topic, and we still stand to learn something even after research since we just ‘do no know everything.’ The learning opportunity approach is most conductive to growth.What traits of character does it require to be able to live according to that approach?Character traits required to live by this approach involved virtues like patience, understanding, compassion, etc. The traits that are best for social cohesion and positive relationship growth are best fitted to this approach.What benefits can it have in our lives to take that approach? Provide a specific example.In taking the time to consider other viewpoints, not only do we allow ourselves to learn with greater ease, we also foster greater respect for each other. This in turn should strengthen our relationships in general. We see these beneficial results arising from the principles of charity and accuracy:”By giving people the benefit of the doubt and treating their views as charitably as possible, you will earn a reputation as someone who is more interested in productive discussion than in scoring points. You will have a lot more discussions this way, and both you and the other people involved are likely to learn a lot more.” (Hardy et al 9.4 2015)As an example, if we gain a reputation for evenhandedness, others are more likely to come to us for advice and we can have a positive impact in helping others to avoid rash decisions. Many of my friends and family come to me for assistance when weighing arguments, and I am able to pass along a little helpful information about logic that helps them grow a bit more. This is ideal because more and more people will begin applying logic critically in their own lives and this makes for a more rational and charitable community. This can help us avoid a society like that of the comedy Idiocracy (Links to an external site.)!I hope this example post helps demonstrate how to apply the material in the assigned reading this week, and please feel free to follow up with any questions.MINIMUM WORDS: 150