Further Discussion

For me I think should have had further been discussed because there were so many different kinds and they I found it so confusing. I read over that concept so much and I thought I knew it getting into the test, but didn’t do as well as I thought I did after reviewing the results. All the different types of fallacies were briefly described in the book, so it was hard to follow the assignments and the examples did not help my understanding. Having us blog about it and having the website to refer to kind of helped but taking the test really showed how much you truly understood the material. I know that fallacies are a main part of arguments because they make them weak or strong. 

       Another concept I felt needed further discussion Epstein's chapter 9 on Concealed Claims. According to Epstein, Euphemism is when a word or phrase that makes something sound better than a neutral description and Dysphemism is when a word or phrase that makes something sound worse than a neutral description. Epstein gives us examples of these concepts, but does not go into depth or detail in how we can apply these concepts or how to use these concepts in words in everyday life. 

Favorite/LeastFavorites

This was my first time taking an online class and it taught me a lot.  My favorite part about the class was being able to work in groups with people from the class. Regardless of how difficult it got when we had to meet up, I liked working in groups. I like meeting new people and working to adapt to the circumstances of each member. I find it useful and that it served as practice for the real world. My least favorite part of this class was that the due date for our homework each week was Saturdays. I would have much preferred it if homework was due Sunday. Another thing that can be improved is having all of the blogs finished in 12 hour intervals.  I understand that this helps us become disciplined and up to date with our deadlines, but it does become difficult. I wanted to be able to do things on my own time by taking an online class. Having to turn in things in 12 hour intervals were tough because of my hectic schedule. I always had to them towards the end of the week. I think it should be up to the students when to do their blogs but still have a due date. 11:59pm worked out fine, but I just again would say that I’d prefer to start on a Monday and have things turned in by Sunday.

What I have learned

I learned the many types of arguments one can make. Arguments can range from deciding which brand is better or making conclusions in more serious matters like business decisions. I now know how to effectively listen and decide. Another thing I picked up from this class was how to counter-argue. I have learned the types of arguments and parts of arguments one can use to argue so I can effectively counter-argue if I chose to do. If I am agreeing or disagreeing with an argument I am able to review both sides of the argument better now I believe.

Lastly, I have learned how to work in groups. The three projects/essays assigned were completed in groups. In our group we were able to designate jobs and break down the assignment. By breaking down the assignment we could figure out when to do what and create deadlines and meeting times to complete the assignment. From this we also learned adaptability because we would have to adapt to each other schedules and the circumstances that followed in the execution of our projects. 

Cause and Effect Website

The Cause and Effect Website gave an introduction to Casual Arguments. Upon reading further into the web site, I understood that the site explained what casual arguments were. Casual arguments are basically made when something occurs because of something else: a cause and an effect.

Casual arguments are similar to inductive arguments. Both use cause and effect. The premise and the claim have no significant difference. However, casual arguments have a significant difference for each party involved.

The web site provided three key factors of a casual argument:

1. How acceptable or demonstrable the implied comparison is

2. How likely the case of causation seems to be

3. How credible the “significant difference” or “only significant commonality” claims are.

The website and its exercises have proven to help me understand casual argument/cause and effect better and make it easier to identify and apply it to my every day arguments and thoughts. 

Cause

Chapter 15 discusses: What is the Cause? This section was about looking at the root causes an argument could be divided into sections to clarify each part of a cause. First, causes and effects discussed the statement “Spot caused me to wake up”. The relationship between Spot and Dick is what the cause was. The second part was about the normal condition, which is the unstated claims that are obvious and plausible. The third part is about particular causes, generalization, and general causes. Particular causes happen in correlation: every time this happens that happens. There was also the section about the cause that precedes the effect. This part pointed out the preceded part of the cause that Spot barked and then Dick woke up. The cause makes a difference was the fifth section. This discussed how sometimes the correlations are not enough there needs to be an “if” involved. The sixth section is overlooking a common cause. The seventh was about tracing the cause backwards which was looking at what caused the dog to bark. The eighth section gave criteria for cause and effect which summarized what is necessary for cause and effect. The ninth section was about what mistakes could be made when evaluating cause and effect: reversing cause and effect or looking to hard for a cause.

Mission Critical

The Mission Critical website was very helpful because it is a review of the past semester’s work. The website serves as a tool that goes over most of the topics that we have discussed in the book with additional topics. Vagueness and ambiguity was the concept that was brought up that I had to clear up. Vagueness and ambiguity can be difficult to understand, but I was able to figure out the differences between these concepts. It is difficult to understand because vagueness and ambiguity seem to have similar definitions.  Something that is vague is defined as something that is general, and unclear.  Something that is ambiguous has the ability to have a variety of different meanings. 

An example of vagueness is shown in this sentence:

That is a hot spot to hang around.

This is an example of vagueness because it is unclear that the location is actually hot in temperature, but in terms of slang it means that the place is a popular place to be.

An example of ambiguity is shown in this sentence:

The grass is always greener on the other side.

This is an example of ambiguity because this can be interpreted in different ways. One, that the grass is a different shade of green on the other side. Two, there is always something better for you. It depends on how you perceive this sentence.

Reasoning by the Law

In Chapter 12 of Epstein, it discusses how Reasoning by Analogy is used in the law. The section explained that in law these type of arguments are the most used because it gives a chance for lawyers to provide details, that are carefully analyzed arguments. SInce laws are vague and not specific it is difficult for the Supreme Court, federal courts, state courts, county courts, and local courts. 
The most common Reasoning by Analogy used in the law is reasoning by example. It is used based on a case for case basis. Edward H. Levi’s An Introduction to Legal Reasoning, discusses how "any case sets a precedent for other cases. By setting a precedent with any law the law becomes more specific based on the ruling of the judge." There are always cases that are later over ruled. The most important case in which this occured was Brown v. The Board of Education. The case allowed the “equal but separate” precedent for many cases until nearly a hundred years later when the case was considered wrong.