Being logical: a guide to good thinking

Preparing the mind for logic

The basic principles of logic

Argument : the language of logic

The sources of illogical thinking

The principal forms of illogical thinking.

Part One: Preparing the mind for logic

Be attentive

Get the facts straight

Ideas and the objects of ideas

Be mindful of the origins of ideas

Match ideas to facts

Match words to ideas

Effective communication

Avoid vague and ambiguous language

Avoid evasive language

Truth

Part Two: The basic principles of logic

First principles

Real gray areas, manufactured gray areas

There's an explanation for everything, eventually

Don't stop short in the search for causes

Distinguish among causes

Define your terms

The categorical statement

Generalizing

Part Three: Argument: the language of logic

Founding an argument

The move from universal to particular

The move from particular to universal

Predication

Negative statements

Making comparisons

Comparison and argument

Sound argument

Conditional argument

Syllogistic argument

The truth of premises

The relevancy of premises

Statements of fact, statements of value

Argumentative form

Conclusions must reflect quanitity of premises

Conclusions must reflect quality of premises

Inductive argument

Assessing argument

Constructing an argument

Part Four: The sources of illogical thinking

Skepticism

Evasive agnosticism

Cynicism and naive optimism

Narrow-mindedness

Emotion and argument

The reason for reasoning

Argumentation is not quarreling

The limits of sincerity

Common sense

Part Five: The principal forms of illogical thinking

Denying the antecedent

Affirming the consequent

The undistributed middle term

Equivocation

Begging the question

False assumptions

The straw-man fallacy

Using and abusing tradition

Two wrongs don't make a right

The democratic fallacy

Substituting for the force of reason

The uses and abuses of expertise

The quantifying of quality

Consider more than the source

Stopping short at analysis

Reductionism

Misclassification

The red herring

Laughter as diversionary tactic

Tears as diversionary tactic

An inability to disprove does not prove

The false dilemma

Post hoc ergo propter hoc

Special pleading

The fallacy of expediency

Avoiding conclusions

Simplistic reasoning

Afterword.