Logic Themes
Objectives
Acquisition of an adequate appreciation of a set of fundamental philosophical questions posed by Logic understood both as method and as theory.
Understanding and critical reflection on the views and responses outlined by the authors discussed in the course.
Familiarization with the analytic tradition in philosophy, and understanding of the decisive role of logic in the determination of its distinctive character.
General characterization
Code
711031081
Credits
6.0
Responsible teacher
João de Deus Santos Sàágua
Hours
Weekly - 4
Total - 168
Teaching language
Portuguese
Prerequisites
Not applicable
Bibliography
Carnap, R. (1930). The Old and the New Logic. In A. J. Ayer (Ed.), Logical Positivism. Free Press (1958).
Carnap, R. (1950a). Empiricism, Semantics, and Ontology. Revue Internationale de Philosophie, 4(11)
Carnap, R. (1950b). Logical Foundations of Probability. Chicago, IL, USA: Chicago University of Chicago Press. [apenas pp.1-18]
Grice, P. (1975). Logic and Conversation. In Studies in the Way of Words. Harvard University Press (1989).
Hansson, S. O. (2018). Formalization. In S. O. Hansson & V. F. Hendricks (Eds.), Introduction to Formal Philosophy (2018). Springer.
Quine, W. V. O. (1935). Truth by Convention. In The Ways of Paradox and Other Essays. Harvard University Press (1966).
Quine, W. V. O. (1951). Two Dogmas of Empiricism. In From a Logical Point of View. Harvard University Press (1953).
Teaching method
The sessions include expositive moments, interventions from and discussion with students, reading and analysis of texts, and student’s presentations.
Evaluation method
Evaluation Methodologies - Written essay (10 pages) on one of the topics covered in class (35%), final exam (35%), participation in class and presentation and discussion of a text/exercise in response to one of three work proposals distributed throughout the semester (30%)
Subject matter
The course is divided into 3 thematic blocks.
I. Analysis and Formalization
- Logic as a tool for clarifying and transforming/improving discourse and thought: logical analysis, formalization, regimentation and explication.
- Natural vs. formal languages.
- Central texts: Rudolf Carnap (1930, 1950b pp.1-18) and Sven Ove Hansson (2018).
II. Logic and Analyticity
- Freedom, tolerance, creativity, and practical convenience in choosing a language or system of representations.
- Linguistic rules and conventions and the hypothesis of the reduction of logical truths to analytic truths.
- The Quinean critique of the analytic-synthetic distinction.
- Central texts: Carnap (1950a) and Quine (1935, 1951).
III. Logic and Conversation
- The rationality of conversation: logical relations and inferences vs. conversational relations and inferences.
- The Cooperative Principle, conversational maxims and implicatures.
- Central text: Grice (1975)