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6Gilbert as DisrupterInformal Logic 44 (1): 507-520. 2022.Michael Gilbert’s multi-modal theory of argument challenges earlier accounts of arguing assumed in formal and informal logic. His account of emotional, visceral, and kisceral modes of arguing rejects the assumption that all arguments must be treated as instances of one “logical mode.” This paper compares his alternative modes to other modes proposed by those who have argued for visual, auditory, and other “multimodal” modes of arguing. I conclude that multi-modal and multimodal (without the hyph…Read more
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11Greek Scepticism: Anti-Realist Trends in Ancient ThoughtMcGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. 1990.The idea that Western philosophy is a footnote to Plato is simplistic and inaccurate. Much of modern and contemporary epistemology owes a debt not so much to Platonism or Aristotelianism as to their antithesis: scepticism. Recent discussions in the history of philosophy have sparked a great deal of interest in the ancient sceptics, but until now they have been misunderstood and the significance of their philosophy not fully appreciated.
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34The Toils of Scepticism.Greek Scepticism: Anti-realist Trends in Ancient ThoughtPhilosophical Quarterly 41 (165): 512-513. 1991.
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13Gilbert as DisrupterInformal Logic 43 (4): 507-520. 2022.Michael Gilbert’s multi-modal theory of argument challenges earlier accounts of arguing assumed in formal and informal logic. His account of emotional, visceral, and kisceral modes of arguing rejects the assumption that all arguments must be treated as instances of one “logical mode.” This paper compares his alternative modes to other modes proposed by those who have argued for visual, auditory, and other “multimodal” modes of arguing. I conclude that multi-modal and multimodal (without the hyph…Read more
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10Review of How Philosophers Argue: An Adversarial Collaboration on the Russell-Copleston Debate (review)Informal Logic 43 (1): 138-146. 2023.This article reviews Fernando Leal and Hubert Marraud’s How Philosopher’s Argue: An Adversarial Collaboration on the Russell-Copleston Debate (Springer 2022).
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6Gilbert as DisrupterInformal Logic 43 (4): 507-520. 2022.Michael Gilbert’s multi-modal theory of argument challenges earlier accounts of arguing assumed in formal and informal logic. His account of emotional, visceral, and kisceral modes of arguing rejects the assumption that all arguments must be treated as instances of one “logical mode.” This paper compares his alternative modes to other modes proposed by those who have argued for visual, auditory, and other “multimodal” modes of arguing. I conclude that multi-modal and multimodal (without the hyph…Read more
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40Auditory Arguments: The Logic of 'Sound' ArgumentsInformal Logic 38 (3): 312-340. 2018.This article discusses “auditory” arguments: arguments in which non-verbal sounds play a central role. It provides examples and explores the use of sounds in argument and argumentation. It argues that auditory arguments are not reducible to verbal arguments but have a similar structure and can be evaluated by extending standard informal logic accounts of good argument. I conclude that an understanding of auditory elements of argument can usefully expand the scope of informal logic and argumentat…Read more
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13Where Do Sounds Fit Within Informal Logic?Informal Logic 38 (3): 362-368. 2018.In response to commentaries by Eckstein and Kišiček, I argue that the study of auditory arguments is very much in keeping with the critical thinking ideals that motivate informal logic. In the process I support further research on sound figures and the meaning of sound that would enhance our ability to analyze auditory arguments.
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15Recent work on multimodal argumentation has explored facets of argumentation which have no obvious analogue in the written arguments which were emphasized in traditional accounts of argument. One of these facets is prosody: the structure and quality of the sound of spoken language. Prosodic features include pitch, temporal structure, pronunciation, loudness and voice quality, rhythm, emphasis and accent. In this paper, we explore the ways that prosodic features may be invoked in arguing.
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85Good Reasoning Matters!: A Constructive Approach to Critical ThinkingOxford University Press Canada. 2004.Now in its fifth edition, Good Reasoning Matters! is a practical guide to recognizing, evaluating, and constructing arguments. Combining straightforward instruction with abundant exercises and examples, this innovative introduction to argument schemes and rhetorical techniques will help students learn to think critically both within and beyond the classroom.
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Scepticism: A DefenseDissertation, The University of Western Ontario (Canada). 1982.Sceptical arguments have played a seminal role in the development of philosophical thought. The thesis considers traditional sceptical arguments and their application to a variety of issues. Four major topics--the external world, logic and mathematics, ethics, and the problem of other minds--are discussed in detail. Three other topics are discussed to a lesser extent. In each case, the dissertation defends the sceptical conclusion that it is impossible to build a rational basis for belief, and e…Read more
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32Johnson on the Metaphysics of ArgumentArgumentation 16 (3): 277-286. 2002.This paper responds to two aspects of Ralph Johnson's Manifest Rationality (2000). The first is his critique of deductivism. The second is his failure to make room for some species of argument (e.g., visual and kisceral arguments) proposed by recent commentators. In the first case, Johnson holds that argumentation theorists have adopted a notion of argument which is too narrow. In the second, that they have adopted one which is too broad. I discuss the case Johnson makes for both claims, and pos…Read more
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77Deductivism Within Pragma-DialecticsArgumentation 13 (1): 1-16. 1999.The present paper elaborates a deductivist account of natural language argu-ment in the context of pragma-dialectics. It reviews earlier debates, criticizes some standard misconceptions in the literature, and argues that the identification and analysis of deductive argument schemes can be the basis of a compelling theory of argumentative discourse
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17Is restructuring an underhanded way to make the rich richer and the poor poorer? Or is it necessary, although bitter, medicine for an ailing economy? In The Ethics of the New Economy: Restructuring and Beyond, professionals from the fields of philosophy, ethics, management, as well as those representing the groups affected by restructuring, tackle thorny ethical issues. Referring to concrete case studies, these timely essays discuss a variety of topics, including justified and unjustified restru…Read more
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59On Nicholas of Autrecourt and the Law of Non-ContradictionDialogue 23 (1): 129-134. 1984.According to the standard account of Nicholas' views,his scepticism is constrained by his commitment to the law of non-contradiction as a basis for certain truth. Such an account fails to distinguish the views found in the "Leters to Bernard" and the "Exigit Ordo" the latter clear rejects the law of non-contradiction and propounds a full fledged scepticism
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38Good reasoning matters!: a constructive approach to critical thinkingOxford University Press. 1997.Offering an innovative approach to critical thinking, Good Reasoning Matters! identifies the essential structure of good arguments in a variety of contexts and also provides guidelines to help students construct their own effective arguments. In addition to examining the most common features of faulty reasoning--slanting, bias, propaganda, vagueness, ambiguity, and a common failure to consider opposing points of view--the book introduces a variety of argument schemes and rhetorical techniques. T…Read more
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The Sophists: Towards a More Sophisticated ViewEidos: The Canadian Graduate Journal of Philosophy 4
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111Descartes' first meditation: Something old, something new, something borrowedJournal of the History of Philosophy 22 (3): 281-301. 1984.
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19Stewardship gone astray? Ethics and the SAAIn Chris Scarre & Geoffrey Scarre (eds.), The Ethics of Archaeology: Philosophical Perspectives on Archaeological Practice, Cambridge University Press. pp. 163--180. 2006.
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Paul Kurtz, The New Skepticism: Inquiry and Reliable Knowledge (review)Philosophy in Review 13 101-103. 1993.
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67Logic, Art and ArgumentInformal Logic 18 (2). 1996.Most infonnallogic texts and articles assume a verbal account of reasoning which defines "argument" as a set of sentences. The present paper broadens this definition in order to account for "visual arguments" which are communicated with nonverbal visual images. Standard approaches to verbal arguments are extended in a way that allows them to explain and evaluate visual argumentation
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14This paper is an in depth discussion of the work on fallacies collected in the "Selected Papers" of Woods and Walton. While it defends many of their claims, it argues that they have not shown that their formal approach should be an integral part of that discipline we now call "informal logic".
Peterborough, Ontario, Canada