PP217 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Fallacy, Assisted Suicide
Document Summary
A conclusion is a statement that someone is trying to prove true. claim and position to refer to a conclusion. Now, a rational person doesn"t accept a claim just because someone asserts it: we want to be given reasons for agreeing with a conclusion. An argument is a set of reasons given in support of a claim. If an argument works (is sound, or informally, good) then it proves that the conclusion is true. The most important point here is simply this: arguments and conclusions are not the same thing! Remember, an argument is the set of reasons given for accepting a conclusion; the conclusion to an argument is what it aims to prove. A conclusion can be true even if an argument is not sound; but if an argument is sound, the conclusion must be true. Again: whether an argument is good and whether a conclusion is true are two different questions.
