Week 3, Post 2
There is a difference between a strong argument and a valid argument. What makes an argument strong or valid is the conclusion; the conclusion needs to be supported by the premises. In the book, "Critical Thinking," Richard Epstein mentioned that both a strong and valid argument does not depend on:
1. Whether the premises are true.
2. Whether we know the premises are true.
3. Whether the person making the argument thinks the argument is valid or strong.
Popcorn is available at every movie theater my friends and I go to. Therefore, every movie theater serves popcorn.
Both the premise and the conclusion are true making this an example of a strong argument. Although there is a possibility that either or both the premise and the conclusion is false, it is slim when the argument is less questionable. The statements are specific which is more likely believed to be true.
Popcorn is at the movie theaters. Therefore, every movie theater serves popcorn.
Even though the conclusion is the same conclusion as the example for the strong argument, the premise is slightly vague. Both the premise and the conclusion can be questioned whether it is true or false. The possibility of having a a false premise or conclusion is higher because it is not as detailed or supported. Because it is unlikely to be false, this is an example of a valid argument.
Your examples makes more sense than the one I posted on my blog.When I read the examples in Epstein's book, it did not made any sense, so I read some other examples on the blogs, but yours was easy to comprehend. I understand what makes an argument strong, but I don't understand what makes an argument valid.This is still confusing for me :/. What I understand is that a valid argument has premises that gives less details and remains vague.In your second example, you said there was popcorn at the movie theaters which makes it vague and unclear for the reader.Which movie theaters? Thanks for making it clear ^^.
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