Being Logical: A Guide to Good Thinking

by Dennis Q. McInerny

Book Overview

An essential tool for our post-truth world: a witty primer on logic--and the dangers of illogical thinking--by a renowned Notre Dame professor Logic is synonymous with reason, judgment, sense, wisdom,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812971159
• ISBN13: 9780812971156
• Release Date: May 2005
• Publisher: Random House Trade
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.2" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

Genius is always simple.

This qualifies as one of my favorite kinds of books, which I call "Short Books of Profound Meaning." Prof. McInerny's work here is one of distillment, of boiling down to bare essentials a discipline which is often absurdly over-theoretized. McInerny's insights into logic, reason, and the objectivity of truth are hard-won and presuppose an ontology of realism. Moreover, this book, unlike books, say, on symbolic logic (which completely ignores the facticity of things), actually gives reasons; it explains WHY untruthful statements are untruthful, how validity "works", why and how logical fallacies are logically fallacious. In short, this is one of those rare books that should be read and re-read, considered and absorbed, and, ultimately, applied.

An advisor on how to think

All thinking persons need an advisor about HOW to think, and D.Q. McInerny is the best candidate for that position I can think of. McInerny, in Being Logical, becomes to thinking what Strunk and White have long been to writing. A voice of common sense, a voice reminding us what the essentials are. Some poeple, of course, (and oh how many there are!) want to engage in discussion for the purpose of listening to themselves. Some expound on this or that without concern for genuine argument. For such persons this book will be worthless--even damaging. Consider the following McInerny reminder: "The whole purpose of reasoning, of logic, is to arrive at the truth of things. This is often an arduous task, as truth can sometimes be painfully elusive. But not to pursue truth would be absurd, since it is the only thing that gives meaning to all of our endeavors." What a breath of fresh air to read this! And to be reminded that argument is rational discourse, and not to be confused with mere quarreling. "There are," McInerny tells us, "any number of folk who, though happy to quarrel with you, are either unwilling or unable to ARGUE with you. Do not waste time and energy trying to argue with people who will or cannot argue." So be it. And if you're looking for one of the best indexes of slipshod reasoning, half-baked arguments, weak ideas and fallacy--here, at last it all is in a usable, clear package. This book is small enough that you can carry it around with you in your back pocket and quote from it to point out the fallacies and weaknesses in an opponent's argument--though I wouldn't recommend doing so on a crowded bus or subway, nor with your boss in the workplace. It might be better to read this book carefully and practice it on all your own arguments for a considerable period before using it as a weapon against an opponent in argument. And how about "Laughter as a Diversionary Tactic," being listed under principal forms of illogical thinking? This is priceless--and oh, so accurate, so reflective of the kind of arguments one gets into nowadays--about politics in particular (I don't even remember reading this one in my undergraduate logic textbook years ago where all the logical fallacies were categorized and discussed). And then there's "Tears as a diversionary tactic." I do believe all of this was covered somewhere in Cicero ("If you can't defeat your opponent's argument--then ridicule your opponent"). One big reason few people can distinguish between argument and polemics is that the core knowledge about how to think straight contained in McInerny's little book--a knowledge which goes back to the Greeks--is seldom taught, seldom learned, and seldom applied when it has been learned. If Being Logical can make even one small dent in the armor of irrationality, then it does a great service. McInerny's advice is the same as Emily Dickinson's: Opinion is a flitting thing But Truth outlasts the Sun If then we cannot

My Two 'Sense'

A beautifully written book. It illustrates well the luminosity and simplicity of the principles of human rationality in both its form (the style is elegantly straightforward) and content (clear, finely argued, principled ideas). Reading this book is like drinking a fine cup of tea. This book serves as an introductory guide to the principles of reasoning with the purpose of the application of logic to life. Through a brief study of the tenets of logical thinking McInerny elucidates the essence of logic and its concrete expression in argumentation. The final section of the book helpfully covers many of the fallacies of logic with clear examples. McInerny's prose is itself the strongest case for the validity and exigency of rational thinking and moral rhetoric. Though I do not accept without qualification the core of McInerny's all too modern presuppositions (universality of the laws of reason, correspondence and coherence theories of truth etc.), this book, and what it graciously argues for, is a much needed corrective to the excessive postmodern rejection of rationality as such. Before you pick up any other book on logic, read this one first. Or, if you want a simple guide to help hone your reasoning skills, this may be the best book out there. It can also serve as a handy reference on your shelf. Once you read it, you may find yourself reading it again. I am.

An excellent guide to thinking logically

The author expresses his hope that this book will do for clear thinking what Strunk & White did (and still does) with their concise work for clear writing. Without question, the author seems to have accomplished this goal. "Being Logical" is very well-written, concise, systematic, and easy to follow. Furthermore, it is an enjoyable read. I highly recommend it!

A Mighty Mite of a Book

Maybe it's because this is an extremely partisan election year. But these days, a seeker of truth knows that reason, clarity, and honesty are in short supply. How wonderful, then, to find these virtues and more in one resource. I'm alluding to D.Q. McInerny and his mighty mite of a book, "Being Logical." Be assured that McInerny deftly covers the positive principles and the tempting pitfalls governing everyone's attempts to think logically. And he accomplishes this with quiet humor, with the patience of the best kind of teacher. Although I wish I'd encountered him much earlier, I'm happy to discover him now. Yet there's more to this book. Simply put, it places the force of inspiration in the reader's mind. Every day, now, in his congenial way, McInerny is there, exhorting me to think straighter and better. And he makes me want to do this despite the prospect of failure, which (for me) is usually lurking just around the corner. What more could be asked of an author than that? Robert Graves and Alan Hodge have asserted that "the writing of good English is...a moral matter." So is the practice of effective logic, as successfully demonstrated by D.Q. McInerny in "Being Logical."