Logic

Logic is the study of reasoning. The rules of logic let philosophers make logical deductions about the world. Logic helps people decide whether something can be true or false.

Logic is often written in syllogisms, which are one type of logical proof. A syllogism is made from a collection of statements used to logically prove the final statement, called the conclusion. One popular example of a logical syllogism was written by the Classical Greek philosopher Aristotle:

1. All men are mortal.
2. Socrates is a man.
3. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.

The conclusion is the final statement. This syllogism connects the first two statements to make a logical deduction: Socrates is mortal.

The syllogism is made from three logical statements or propositions. These statements are short sentences describing a small step in a logical argument. The small statements make up the argument, the same way atoms make up molecules. When logic is correct, the statements are said to "follow" from each other.

Statements have a truth value, meaning they can be proved to be true or false, but not both. Illogical statements or mistakes in logic are called logical fallacies.