Let's be logical

AND philosophical.

I've added to our curriculum.

One night a week, I'm reading a chapter out loud from one of the following books and then we discuss, en famille.

The Philosophy Files


and

Crimes Against Logic


I'm alternating the books and at the rate of one a week, altogether this should take 20 weeks (since I very logically added up all the chapters. Cunning, that.)

The Philosophy Files book is organized in 'files' or topics for discussion. It's illustrated with humorous black line cartoons and it's quite funny, but the actual content is serious. The author often presents the arguments as, well, arguments, by quoting from supposed conversations between friends debating the issues, and interjects his own information throughout by pointing out some fallacies in certain arguments, or simply expanding on an idea. The topics up for debate range from Should I eat meat? to Does God exist? as well as tackling virtual reality in How do I know the world isn't virtual?

Crimes Against Logic is a more challenging book but so very worth it. The first chapter at least should be mandatory reading for anyone who participates in online forums. It's called The Right to Your Opinion and will finally clear up for everyone why it's so unsatisfying when debaters retreat behind the "I'm entitled to my opinion" bulwark. The Guardian described this book thus: "Ruthlessly exposes logical flaws....angry and witty" and that's pretty much the sum. It's subtitled "Exposing the Bogus Arguments of Politicians, Priests, Journalists, and Other Serial Offenders" so it takes a broad sweep at most of the claims made in the public sphere of our lives.

I'm still waiting for the new edition of Weston's A Rulebook for Arguments (publication date is Jan 31, 2009)



to arrive and then I'll try to figure out how to fold it in.