Formal scientists have attempted to combine logic and dialectic through
formalisation. These attempts include pre-formal and partially formal treatises on argument and
dialectic, systems based on
defeasible reasoning
In philosophical logic, defeasible reasoning is a kind of reasoning that is rationally compelling, though not deductive reasoning, deductively valid. It usually occurs when a rule is given, but there may be specific exceptions to the rule, or su ...
, and systems based on
game semantics
Game semantics (german: dialogische Logik, translated as ''dialogical logic'') is an approach to Formal semantics (logic), formal semantics that grounds the concepts of truth or Validity (logic), validity on game theory, game-theoretic concepts, su ...
and
dialogical logic
Dialogical logic (also known as the logic of dialogues) was conceived as a pragmatic approach to the semantics of logic that resorts to concepts of game theory such as "winning a play" and that of "winning strategy".
Since dialogical logic was the ...
.
History
Since the late 20th century, European and American
logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
ians have attempted to provide mathematical foundations for dialectic through formalisation,
although logic has been related to dialectic since ancient times.
There have been pre-formal and partially-formal treatises on argument and dialectic, from authors such as
Stephen Toulmin (''The Uses of Argument'', 1958),
Nicholas Rescher
Nicholas Rescher (; ; born 15 July 1928) is a German-American philosopher, polymath, and author, who has been a professor of philosophy at the University of Pittsburgh since 1961. He is chairman of the Center for Philosophy of Science and was fo ...
(''Dialectics: A Controversy-Oriented Approach to the Theory of Knowledge'', 1977),
and
Frans H. van Eemeren and
Rob Grootendorst (
pragma-dialectics, 1980s).
One can include works of the communities of
informal logic and
paraconsistent logic.
Defeasibility
Building on theories of
defeasible reasoning
In philosophical logic, defeasible reasoning is a kind of reasoning that is rationally compelling, though not deductive reasoning, deductively valid. It usually occurs when a rule is given, but there may be specific exceptions to the rule, or su ...
(see
John L. Pollock
John L. Pollock (1940–2009) was an American philosopher known for influential work in epistemology, philosophical logic, cognitive science, and artificial intelligence.
Life and career
Born John Leslie Pollock in Atchison, Kansas, on Janu ...
), systems have been built that define well-formedness of arguments, rules governing the process of introducing arguments based on fixed assumptions, and rules for shifting burden.
Many of these logics appear in the special area of
artificial intelligence and law, though the computer scientists' interest in formalizing dialectic originates in a desire to build
decision support
A decision support system (DSS) is an Information systems, information system that supports business or organizational decision-making activities. DSSs serve the management, operations and planning levels of an organization (usually mid and hig ...
and computer-supported collaborative work systems.
[For surveys of work in this area see, for example: And: ]
Dialog games
Dialectic itself can be formalised as moves in a game, where an advocate for the truth of a proposition and an opponent argue.
Such games can provide a
semantics of logic
In logic, the semantics of logic or formal semantics is the study of the semantics, or interpretations, of formal and (idealizations of) natural languages usually trying to capture the pre-theoretic notion of entailment.
Overview
The truth cond ...
, one that is very general in applicability.
See also
*
Argumentation framework
In artificial intelligence and related fields, an argumentation framework is a way to deal with contentious information and draw conclusions from it using formalized arguments.
In an abstract argumentation framework, entry-level information is a ...
*
Argumentation theory
Argumentation theory, or argumentation, is the interdisciplinary study of how conclusions can be supported or undermined by premises through logical reasoning. With historical origins in logic, dialectic, and rhetoric, argumentation theory, incl ...
*
Logic of argumentation
The logic of argumentation (LA) is a formalised description of the ways in which humans reason and argue about propositions. It is used, for example, in computer artificial intelligence systems in the fields of medical diagnosis and prognosis, ...
References
Dialectic
Logic
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