Chapter 9: The Syllogism

Syllogism
Syllogism is the verbal expression of a deductive reasoning or inference.

The Act of Reasoning

 It is inferential thinking.
 It is the mental process of drawing out a conclusion from a given data.
 In reasoning, the mind makes a conclusion which is consistent with certain assumed data.
 It is the mental process of comparing two concepts with a common third concept for the purpose of establishing
their agreement or disagreement with each other.

Inference
As defined by Irving M. Copi, inference is a process by which one proposition is arrived at and affirmed (or denied) on the
basis of one or more proposition accepted as the starting point of the process.
It is also the result of the act of reasoning in the same way that the concept is the product of simple apprehension and the
proposition that of judgment.
Example:
Every A is B,
But every X is A,
Therefore, every X is B.
The Syllogism : Its Form and Matter
Syllogism is “an oral or written discourse showing the agreement or disagreement between two terms on the basis of their
respective relation to a common third term”.
Syllogism is made up of three (3) proposition – two of which are called premises and the other is conclusion.
Premises- stand for the assumed truths (antecedent) and are said to support conclusion.
Conclusion (consequent) – is the new truth derived form premises.
Proposition are made up of three terms:
a. Minor term is the subject of the Conclusion, and it is symbolized by letter “S” (subject).
b. Major term is the predicate of the Conclusion and symbolized by letter “P” (predicate).
c. Middle tern is the term which appears in both premises but not in conclusion.
It serves as the “common third term” which determines the agreement or disagreement of the Minor and the Major
terms.
It is symbolized by letter “M” (medium of comparison).

Example:
Every Man is rational, (Major Premise)
(M)
But every Filipino is man, (Minor Premise)
(M)
Therefore, every Filipino is rational. (Conclusion)
(S) (P)
Note: The conjunctions “but” and “therefore” are symbols of the sequence. The sequence is the form of an inference or syllogism.
The Valid Syllogism
Valid syllogism is one which is simultaneously true and correct.
Syllogism is correct when it is in conformity with rules of logic.
Syllogism is true when the propositions employed are expressive of truths.
Note: Truth is the agreement of a statement with object reality.

If the syllogism is:

a. Correct as to form but false as to its content – “ formally correct” only to its form.
b. True to its content but incorrect to its form – “Materially true”

Example:
No man is sinless,
But every priest is man,
Therefore, No priest is sinless.

The Invalid Syllogism

A Syllogism is invalid if it is correct in form but false in its content or matter.
Example:
Every mother is pregnant,
But Lakambini is a mother,
Therefore, Lakambini is pregnant.
 Likewise, a syllogism which is incorrect in form, even if it expresses truth, is invalid.
Example:
Some artists are Filipinos,
But some women are Filipinos,
Therefore, some women are artists.

Truth, Correctness, and Validity

The following general laws manifest the connection between truth, correctness, and validity:
1. If the form is correct and the premises are true, the conclusion is true. Therefore, the argument or syllogism is valid.
2. If the form is correct, but the premises are false, the conclusion may be true, only materially and “accidentally”. Therefore, the
argument is invalid.
3. If the form is incorrect, the inference is invalid, regardless of the truth of matter.

Principles of Syllogism
1. The Principle of Reciprocal Identity. Two terms which are identical with a third term are identical with each other.
2. The Principle of Reciprocal Non-Identity. Two terms, one which is identical with a third term and the other of which is non-
identical with that third term, are non-identical with each other.
3. The Principle of “Dictum de Omni”. What can be affirmed universally of a certain term, can be affirmed of every term that
comes under the extension of such term.
4. The Principle of “Dictum de Nullo”. What can be denied universally of a certain term can be denied of every term that comes
within the extension of such term.
Analyzing a Syllogism
To analyse a syllogism, we may proceed as follows:
1. Look for the conclusion and identity the minor term (S) and the major term (P).
2. Look for the premise containing the major term. It is the major premise.
3. Look for the premise containing the minor term. It is the minor premise.
4. Determine whether the conclusion has a sequential relation with the given premise.

Corollary
1. As per Jacques Maritain, the premises are the antecedent, or that which goes before, and the conclusion the consequent, or that
which comes after.
2. The logical whole formed by the antecedent and the consequent is the argumentation or argument.
3. The sequence is the relation which unites the antecedent and the consequent to one another.

Chapter 10: The Rules of Syllogism

Syllogistic Verse
a. On Terms:
Three terms there must be, neither more nor less,
No wider in the conclusion than in the premises,
Conclusion never dares the middle mention,
The middle once or twice has full extension.
b. On Propositions:
Affirmative can never breed negation,
Two negatives end ever in frustration,
Conclusion follows ever the weaker part,
With particulars no argument can start.
The Rules of Syllogism
a. Rules on Terms:
1. There must be three and only three terms.
 A syllogism with four terms is erroneous and is called a “logical quadruped”. This is committed either by:
a. Arithmetical Addition – adding a fourth term in a syllogism
b. Equivocation – assigning to any of the terms two or more different meanings
c. Changing Supposition – assigning different meanings to a given term in a syllogism.

2. No term must have greater extension in the conclusion than it has in the premises.
 Neither of the minor and major terms may be universal in the conclusion when either is a particular in the premises.
A term which is particular in the premise but universal in the conclusion in considered “over-extended”.
 An “illicit minor” is an over-extended minor term and an “illicit major” is an over-extended major term.

3. The Middle Term must not appear in the conclusion.

 The Middle Term has no place in the conclusion which, precisely, is the affirmation or the negation of the relation
between the minor and the major terms.

4. The Middle Term must be universal at least once.

 If the middle term were to be a particular in both premises, it cannot exactly identify itself with either the minor or
the major.
 A middle term which is twice a particular is called “undistributed middle”

b. Rules on Propositions:
5. Two affirmative premises yield an affirmative conclusion.
 This rule is obvious from the principle of reciprocal identity: “Two things identical to a common third are identical
with each other.”
6. Two negative premises yield no conclusion.
 If both premises are negative, it could only mean that both terms do not identify with the common third term.
Therefore, nothing is established between them and, consequently, no conclusion is possible.
7. When one premise is negative, the conclusion must be negative; when one premise is particular, the conclusion must be
particular.
 Since the conclusion comes from the premises, it cannot declare more than what the premises declare. The
conclusion may not imply what the premises do not imply.

8. When both premises are particular, there is no conclusion.

 Two particular premises lead to the fallacy of illicit major or the fallacy of undistributed middle.