Logic, Arguments, and Fallacies: Faculty Source Packet
A faculty-reviewed reader for ASHA-201 introducing logic, arguments, and fallacies through transparent methods and evidence boundaries.
Orientation
An argument contains premises offered in support of a conclusion. Validity concerns whether the conclusion follows if the premises are true; soundness also requires true premises.
Core concept
Deductive arguments aim at necessity, inductive arguments at probability, and abductive arguments at the best explanation of evidence.
Evidence and method
False dilemma, circular reasoning, equivocation, ad hominem, and appeal to ignorance can appear in both religious and secular argument.
Application and limits
Strong comparative theology states each view fairly and avoids treating resemblance alone as proof of borrowing.
What the evidence establishes
Deductive arguments aim at necessity, inductive arguments at probability, and abductive arguments at the best explanation of evidence.
What remains interpretive
The course requires students to distinguish disciplinary evidence from theological or philosophical interpretation and to state uncertainty where evidence is incomplete.
Seminar questions
- Which claim is most strongly established?
- What alternative explanation deserves consideration?
- How would stronger evidence change the conclusion?