Chapter 6 talks about compound claims; what they are, how to use them, etc.
The first thing I learned from this chapter is what a compound claim actually is. The book's definition of a compound claim is, "A compound claim is one composed of other claims, but which has to be viewed as just one claim." An example of a compound claim would be "I'll call you by 2'o'clock today or I'll come over to your house." We therefore have one claim, and not two. In this specific kind of claims, the one word that links the two claims and turns them into one claim is the word "or."
The second thing I learned from chapter 6 is what false dilemmas are. The book's definition of false dilemmas is "A bad use of excluding possibilities where the "or" claim is false or implausible. Sometimes just the dubious "or" claim itself is called a "false dilemma."" What this means is that sometimes, people make bad arguments because one or both of their claims are invalid. For example, "You're either getting rid of this couch, or we are getting rid of your cat!" This is a false dilemma and therefore, the argument is not good.
Your explanation of both compound claims and false dilemmas is very clear and understandable. Your compound claim example gives a clear difference and shows what could happen. And with the use of “or”, its easier to see that is what makes the sentence a compound claim. I also like your false dilemma example. It did not make any sense at first, but that is why it is a good example to show what a false dilemma would look or sound like. I also like that you showed these two examples together because it showed the difference between a good compound claim and a bad compound claim that created a false dilemma.
ReplyDeleteI learned these things as well from chapter 6. What I like about your post is you are very thorough. You stated what exactly is a compound claim and you accompanied it with an example. To me this shows that you understand what a compound claim is. You mentioned the most important part of compound claims, they have the word "or" in them. As for false dilemmas, you added the text book's definition, which is very accurate and clear. Again, you provided an example which supported your definition. Without a doubt, this post was well written, and if people read this without reading the text book, they probably would have learned what compound claims and false dilemmas are.
ReplyDeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteThe simplified explanation that you gave helped me understand the main points of both of the topics you chose. The examples you used also express the topics effectively and clearly. Once I read the definition for compound claim I immediately got the point of the topic. The example you gave also fully supported the definition you gave and made it easier to comprehend the difference between a compound claim and “or” claim. For the false dilemma, you also gave a clear definition and a very good example showing how it makes the “or” claim ineffective when used in an argument. All in all, great post! :)