How to Think Critically

Jeff McLaughlin is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Thompson Rivers University.

Preface

PART 1: THE ART OF CRITICAL THINKING

Chapter 1: Identifying Arguments and Non-Arguments



Introduction
Arguments, Not Fights
Critical Thinking and Reasoning
Premises and Conclusions: The Building Blocks of Arguments
Identifying Statements and Arguments
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

Chapter 2: The Use and Abuse of Language



Meaning, Denotation, and Connotation
Defining Words
Vagueness and Ambiguity
Emotion and Prejudice
Scope and Conviction
Incorrect Word Choices
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

Chapter 3: Argument Structure and Assessment



Standardizing Arguments
Editing Arguments
Reconstructing Arguments
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

Chapter 4: Argument Evaluation



Step 1: Satisfactory Premises
Step 2: Supporting Premises
Step 3: Sufficient Support
Passing the S-Test
Failing the S-Test
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

Chapter 5: Argument Types



Deductive Arguments
Inductive Arguments
Arguments from Analogy
Evaluating Deductive Arguments
Evaluating Inductive Arguments
Evaluating Arguments from Analogy
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

Chapter 6: Fallacies



List of Fallacies
Fallacies in Advertising
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

PART II: THE SCIENCE OF CRITICAL THINKING

Chapter 7: Categorical Logic



Categorical Logic and Categorical Statements
The Square of Opposition
Rules of Inference
Depicting Categorical Statements Using Venn Diagrams
Categorical Syllogisms
Using Venn Diagrams to Evaluate Categorical Syllogisms
Using Rules to Evaluate Categorical Syllogisms
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

Chapter 8: Propositional Logic Using Truth Tables



Translating Statements
Basic Truth Tables for “And,” “Or,” “Not,” and “If, Then”
Creating Long Truth Tables
Creating Short Truth Tables
Chapter Exercises
Postscript

Solutions to Chapter Exercises
Glossary of Key Terms
Index