Phil 004. Week 4 Chapter 3 Clarity of an Argument

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Owen Pierce
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1 Phil 004 Week 4 Chapter 3 Clarity of an Argument

2 Announcements Midterms: Average? 132, 88% High score? 148

3 Midterm Review Credibility of a Source Is about assessing the believability of a claim. When a somebody makes a claim, we want to know how believable the they are. How much stock we should put in their claim. The credibility of a source refers to the believability of a source. Are they trustworthy? Are they biased? Do they have the appropriate knowledge or appropriate expertise? NOT how useful a source is. Even if you received 32/32 you may have this problem and I may have given you feedback for improvement.

4 MISTAKEN 1. Arguments (Both good and bad ones) 2. Credibility 3. Rhetoric/Fallacies Sometimes mistaken because of lack of clarity.

5 MISTAKEN: LACK OF CLARITY 1. Dick Cheney is a Robot! 2. World s Smartest Ape Goes to College 3. Vatican Praises Homer Simpson 4. Alien Backs Clinton 5. Mexico Rolls Up World s Largest Enchilada 6. Barack Obama related to Palin, Limbaugh, and George W. Bush 7. Killer Swan Blamed For Man s Drowning 8. Abraham Lincoln was a Woman 9. Alien Bible Found 10. Batman Escapes in Maryland

6 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Argument may not really be an argument if it s not clear; confusing. Prime culprits: Missing information, definitions, context, etc. Vagueness Ambiguity Sometimes done intentionally. Why?

7 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Alan Greenspan (while Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board): It is a tricky problem to find the particular calibration in timing that would be appropriate to stem the acceleration in risk premiums created by falling incomes without prematurely aborting the decline in the inflation-generated risk premiums.

8 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Alan Greenspan (while Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board): On the weather: I would generally expect that today in Washington, D.C., the probability of changes in the weather is highly uncertain. But we are monitoring the data in such a manner that we will be able to update people on changes that are important.

9 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Definition: Vagueness A statement is too vague when it lacks enough detail for our purposes. Let s see what vagueness is 10

10 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Why would somebody claim this sign is too vague? 11

11 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Why would somebody claim this sign is too vague? 12

12 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Why would somebody claim this chart is too vague? 13

13 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Why would somebody claim these instructions are too vague? 14

14 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Ever see anything like this? 15

15 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Why would somebody claim this report is too vague? 16

16 Which is more vague? 1. Oswald was dealt a full house. 2. Oswald is not playing with a full deck. 17

17 Is the italicized term too vague given the implied context? I d just like a regular haircut, please. 18

18 Is the italicized term too vague given the implied context? If you get ready for bed quickly, Mommy has a surprise for you. Just enough details to make a kid intrigued. 19

19 Too vague given the implied context? Let s have a little less noise, for God s sake! I m trying to sleep!! 20

20 Too vague given the implied context? To avoid death from food poisoning, when cooking this dish, let the ingredients sit in the oven for a few minutes, but be sure not to set the temperature too low. 21

21 Too vague, in your opinion? Nothing short of total victory is acceptable in Iraq. 22

22 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Come up with a vague response and a more precise response to each of the following questions: How is your favorite sports team doing? What did you do this weekend? Why did you like (movie name)? 24

23 Group Activity Exercise 3-1 #1-5 Just pick the most vague and the most precise options. 1 D A 2. C D 3 C D 4 C B 5. A D 26

24 What does this mean? 30

25 What does this mean? He worked for me for sixteen years, and when he left I was very satisfied. Does this mean: I was very satisfied with his work. I was very satisfied that he no longer works for me. 31

26 Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Ambiguity An ambiguous statement has more than one meaning, and it isn t clear which meaning is intended. 32

27 How is this Ambiguous? Groups: write at least two different ways of interpreting these sentences. 33

28 How is this Ambiguous? 1. The pizza smells great! 2. I know a little Italian. 3. We can t lose in Iraq. 4. I like eating a lot! 5. Cheney s shooting was terrible. 6. The lead singer of Maroon 5 might be a woman. 34

29 The pizza smells great! Does this mean The pizza smells delicious and makes me want to eat it. Or The pizza has a very sensitive nose and smells things very well. 35

30 I know a little Italian. Does this mean I know a small Italian person? Or I understand a little of the Italian language? 36

31 We can t lose in Iraq. Does this mean It is not possible for us to lose in Iraq? Or We cannot afford to lose in Iraq? It s ambiguous! 37

32 I like eating a lot! Does this mean Eating is something I like a lot? Or Eating a lot is something I like to do? 38

33 Cheney s shooting was terrible. Does this mean Cheney didn t shoot very well? It was terrible Cheney was shot? Cheney s shooting of something was terrible? 39

34 The lead singer of Maroon 5 is a woman. Does this mean Right now the lead singer of the band Maroon 5 is a woman and not Adam Levine? Or Adam Levine is a woman? 40

35 How are these different? SYNTAX: Grammar (Sentence Structure) Linda likes candy more than Howard. People who do not tell the truth frequently get into trouble. SEMATICS: Meaning of Word or Term Women can fish. Charlie rents his apartment. 41

36 Which of these has a syntactical ambiguity? A. My grandmother heard the salesman with a hearing aid. B. My grandmother heard the salesman who had a hearing aid. 42

37 And which of these has a syntactical ambiguity? A. Thinking clearly involves hard work. B. Clearly, thinking involves hard work. 43

38 What s the problem here? Jordan could write more profound essays. Syntax Ambiguity: More what? Charles drew his gun. Semantic Ambiguity: Drew has more than one meaning. 44

39 Ambiguous Headlines Groups: Tell me how the following headlines are ambiguous. Are they syntactically ambiguous or semantically ambiguous? +1 bonus point to group that gets the most correct. 47

40 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 1. PROSTITUTES APPEAL TO POPE

41 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 2. QUEEN MARY HAVING BOTTOM SCRAPED

42 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 3. MINERS REFUSE TO WORK AFTER DEATH

43 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 4. MILK DRINKERS ARE TURNING TO POWDER

44 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 5. SAFETY EXPERTS SAY SCHOOL BUS PASSENGERS SHOULD BE BELTED

45 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 6. INCLUDE YOUR CHILDREN WHEN BAKING COOKIES

46 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 1. PROSTITUTES APPEAL TO POPE Semantic( appeal )

47 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 2. QUEEN MARY HAVING BOTTOM SCRAPED Semantic( Queen Mary )

48 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 3. MINERS REFUSE TO WORK AFTER DEATH Syntax (does this refer to after your own death or somebody else s)

49 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 4. MILK DRINKERS ARE TURNING TO POWDER Semantic( turning )

50 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 5. SAFETY EXPERTS SAY SCHOOL BUS PASSENGERS SHOULD BE BELTED Semantic( belted )

51 What Kind of Ambiguity? Real life headlines: 6. INCLUDE YOUR CHILDREN WHEN BAKING COOKIES Syntax (does this refer to including your children in the activity or as an ingredient)

Phil 004. Week 3 Day 3 Chapter 3: Clarity of an Argument

Phil 004. Week 3 Day 3 Chapter 3: Clarity of an Argument Phil 004 Week 3 Day 3 Chapter 3: Clarity of an Argument Clear Thinking/Writing, and Critical Thinking (Ch3) Argument may not really be an argument if it s not clear; confusing. Prime culprits: Missing