Description
Book SynopsisFrom alcohol and drug addiction to rage on national highways and in airports, many human beings have kept themselves in perpetual turmoil and despair. From encroachment on individual rights and liberties to wars of attrition and mass genocide, human history has continually repeated itself due to a failure to see the light. Containing numerous skill-building exercises, Critical Thinking Unleashed seeks to cultivate the reasoning skills required to overcome such destructive human tendencies and to live meaningful and productive lives in a democratic society. In contrast to other treatments of practical reasoning, Elliot D. Cohen not only teaches students how to identify and refute irrational premises_he also teaches them how to construct rational antidotes to combat the personal, social, and political obstacles they confront in everyday life. Moreover, Cohen encourages students to use the theories and ideas embodied in the history of philosophy in order to construct these rational guid
Trade ReviewIn Critical Thinking Unleashed, Elliot D. Cohen takes the reader through the various parameters of reasoning. It is complex, yet fascinating stuff. But what I found most important perhaps was how so much of what he wrestles with, from deconstructing the news stories behind Iraqi WMD to 'spin' in political campaign ads, cuts to the heart of the challenge we face as citizens in today’s democracy. -- Peter W. Singer, Brookings Institution, author of Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century
In welcome contrast to the many disembodied treatments of critical thinking that have been published, this book speaks with a warm, human voice that knows what is at stake in thinking and provides a thorough tour of the logic and rhetoric that every educated person should master. The author's deep interest in the practical application of the tools of philosophy comes through clearly in this text. Fresh treatments of familiar topics provide a comprehensive view of critical thinking that is distinguished by its humanity and realism. -- Greg Tropea, California State University, Chico
Table of Contents1 Table of Contents 2 Preface to the Student Chapter 3 Introduction: Free Thinking Part 4 I. Kinds of Reasoning Chapter 5 1. The Nuts and Bolts of Reasoning Part 6 Deduction Chapter 7 2. Deductive Reasoning Chapter 8 3. Hypothetical Syllogisms Chapter 9 4. Disjunctive Syllogisms Chapter 10 5. Truth-Functional Logic Chapter 11 6. Categorical Statements Chapter 12 7. Immediate Deductions Chapter 13 8. Categorical Syllogisms Part 14 Induction Chapter 15 9. Generalization Chapter 16 10. Prediction Chapter 17 11. Testimonials Chapter 18 12. Hypothesis Chapter 19 13. Causation Part 20 Behavioral and Emotional Reasoning Chapter 21 14. Behavioral Reasoning Chapter 22 15. Refutation in Practical Reasoning Chapter 23 16. Emotional Reasoning Part 24 II. Informal Fallacies Part 25 Fallacies that Promote Self-Destructive Emotions Chapter 26 17. Inferences from "Must," "Awful," and "Can't" Chapter 27 18. Damning Thoughts and Dutiful Worrying Part 28 Fallacies that Impede Successful Interpersonal Relations Chapter 29 19. Bandwagon Arguments Chapter 30 20. Emotional Appeals Chapter 31 21. Irrelevant Appeals Chapter 32 22. Sophistical Arguments Chapter 33 Appendix: Venn Diagrams 34 Index
