Single Idea 18895

[catalogued under 4. Formal Logic / A. Syllogistic Logic / 3. Term Logic]

Full Idea

What would a 'laws of thought' logic that cast light on natural language deductive thinking be like? Such a logic must be variable-free, conforming to normal syntax, and its modes of reasoning must be transparent, to make them virtually instantaneous.

Gist of Idea

Logic which maps ordinary reasoning must be transparent, and free of variables

Source

Fred Sommers (Intellectual Autobiography [2005], 'How We')

Book Reference

'The Old New Logic', ed/tr. Oderberg,David S. [MIT 2005], p.8


A Reaction

This is the main motivation for Fred Sommers's creation of modern term logic. Even if you are up to your neck in modern symbolic logic (which I'm not), you have to find this idea appealing. You can't leave it to the psychologists.

Related Ideas

Idea 5772 The idea of a variable is fundamental [Russell]

Idea 17699 Variables are auxiliary notions, and not part of the 'eternal' essence of logic [Schönfinkel]