LOGIC 101; Defining Logic and its Purpose

"Logic is the anatomy of thought." – John Locke

Photo by Dan Cristian Pădureț on Unsplash

In very simple terms, logic is the study and practice of the principles that deal with correct reasoning.

Actually, reasoning is the hard part of thinking. Anybody can think or ponder upon an issue, but not everyone can reason correctly on certain issues. Reasoning involves the right way to go about thinking. Starting from the premises from which your arguments are picked, up-until your conclusions. Unlike with mere thinking, there is an order to be followed. With reasoning there are laws that guide you from start to finish, it is a structured process, and not a lawless one.

When I talk over things like logic and philosophy with people, I see the glaring apathy they have on such topics. And usually, the reason for such is not far fetched; they do not know the purpose of logic and therefore they have no reason to pick interest in it.

The funny thing about life is that you must have a reason for doing anything, including learning to reason (haha)

For you reading this, I implore you to be different. Logic and learning to make logical arguments are especially important to us because we are human. And we are human because we have the gift of choice and therefore spend the whole of life making decisions that will shape our destiny. Now those decisions themselves are conclusions from what we can term arguments.

Here’s a typical example of how we reach conclusions in life.

Here’s a student pondering on what course to study in the university;

“I want to study aeronautics, but ohh…. I’m not so good at math”

“But mehn, if I was that good, I’ll have to go abroad for my first degree, that will take too much money.”

“Let me settle for computer science in a good university within the country, its a wiser thing to do, besides I love programming.”

Sounds familiar? I bet it does! Typically that is how decisions are made. They are conclusions of arguments that arise from meditating on options and alternatives we have at hand.

Now, if we say that logic is the study and practice of reasoning, and reasoning is the study and practice of making correct arguments and arriving at correct conclusions. Then we can conclude that since man spends the entirety of his days making decisions through the arguments he makes for or against alternatives, learning to reason correctly is a wise use of his time.

When we talk about logic, the problem is often that people think it applies only to finding answers to some abstract endeavors—they never bring it home. The same logic that mathematicians use to solve complex equations, is the same logic you as an individual needs as you pass through this maze called life.

The ultimate purpose of logic is to help you make correct decisions and make the right judgements. It is to help you answer questions correctly, especially the ones life throws at you.