History Of Logic Research Articles

The Religious Situation in East Asia

We are slowly being conditioned to believe that with decolonization in the political sphere, the “third world” is getting rid of the Christian religion which had come to Asia and Africa—so the story goes—as an auxiliary force of white imperialism. This is a biased and false picture, born perhaps not so much of wishful thinking as of an erroneous logic of history.“ This logic concludes: if Asians and Africans come once again into their own, they ought to reassert their religious personality too.My own observations as a traveler in Asia and Africa are inevitably personal and partial. Because I had more ready access to Catholic sources of information, for example, my comparisons and references most frequently involve Catholicism, although many of the generalizations would apply to Protestantism as well. In any case I found that, as always, the reality proved to be far more complex than the general assumptions.

A History of Formal Logic by I. M. Bochenski

BOOK REVIEWS 188 which is most appropriately called " loving God with the mind," is as great an inconsistency as writing books for illiterates. It is in this spirit that we allow Rev. Brown to assess his own work. " These convictions are not my own creation. . . . None of us understands them fully.... All our attempts to express our faith-excepting liturgy and prayer, and perhaps occasionally even then, must include an echo of laughter.... Authentic religious language is not the language of books and arguments but the language of liturgy and prayer.... Protestantism when all is said and done is more adequately represented by its hymns and prayers than by its textbooks ..." (p. x). Having watched for 226 pages, we must concur. Marymov:nt College, New York, N.Y. IGNATIUs McGuiNEss, 0. P. A History of Formal Logic. By I. M. BocHENSKI and translated by Ivo THoMAS. Published by University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame, Indiana, 1961. Pp. 567, with indices. $20.00. Fr. Bochenski's history of formal logic, completed some five years ago in the German language edition of Formale Logik, was intended to be the "first comprehensive" history of the problems of formal logic. Aware that a scientific study of logicians and their writings, extending over twenty centuries, was more than one man could effectively accomplish, the author readily admits that his Formale Logik really mirrors the collective efforts of very many scholars. To such men and to such schools of scientific research, especially those of the Warsaw and Munster he gives most credit for being able to present and to interpret scientifically about a thousand original texts. The author begins by defining the centre and scope of formal logic. In so doing he hopes to avoid the mistakes and shortcomings of most historians of formal logic in the past. After pointing out how he is going to proceed in the telling of the history of logic, he narrates 'in capsule form its geographical and chronological evolution. He next makes clear why he has adopted the methodology employed throughout, because " logic shows no linear continuity of evolution,'' and " the essential feature of the whole history of logic seems then to he the appearance of different varieties of this science separated both in time and space " (p. 12) . He pictures the four distinctive varieties of logic (ancient, scholastic, mathematical and Indian) as aspects of the same one reality and suggests that there are at least a half-dozen empirical reasons" for speaking of one logic" {p.14). Despite the " depressions " experienced in each variety of logic, over the years a noticeable and genuine progress has been made. Fr. Bochenski relies greatly on the textual evidence of the logicians themselves. He explains that such a 184 BOOK REVIEWS " documented history " will more perfectly and more scientifically delineate " the history of the problematic together with the complex of essential ideas and methods that are closely connected with it " (p. 18) . Realizing the handicaps in adopting such a scientific methodology and a non-linear view of logic's evolution, he frankly admits that he is aiming at a type of general orientation in the specific problems, methods and notions characteristic of each of the four varieties of logic. In this way, the author assures the reader that a" general course of the history of logic and its laws" (p. 19) will be presented in the succeeding :five Parts. His methodology becomes more apparent in Part II. For the Hellenic variety of logic, fathered by Socrates, the author has both respect and praise. Strange as it may seem, it is " the relatively best-known period in the development of formal logic " (p. 27) . Beginning with the pre-Aristotelians and some of their more important contributions, Fr. Bochenski credits Zeno with fashioning an axiomatized system of logical inferences and Plato as " the :first to grasp and formulate a clear idea of logic " and " that his thought made possible the emergence of the science with Aristotle " (p. 89). His extensive treatment of " the :first formal logician," Aristotle, who " was undoubtedly the most fertile logician there has ever been " (p. 27) occupies the major part of the second period of antiquity. His careful exposition of...

No Silver Platter

Prior to World War II, progressives were concerned whether the lone socialist state could survive in a capitalist world. The latter's active and dangerous hostility made the problem more complex than the logic of history should provide. There was fear that the new order might be choked off before it could demonstrate its superiority. As that threat receded and the viability of the Soviet system was assured, the converse of the question was sometimes proposed as a happy but preposterous thought. With the dramatic shift in the preponderance of forces following World War II, it becomes a practical problem. We ask seriously how long the capitalist country can preserve its peculiar institution in a socialist world.This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website, where most recent articles are published in full.Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.

Jan Łukasiewicz's works on the history of logic

Jan Łukasiewicz's works on the history of logic

St. Thomas and the Existence of God. Three Interpretations by William Bryar

BOOK REVIEWS St. Thomas and the Existence of God. Three Interpretations. By William Bryar. Chicago: Henry Regnery Company, 1951. Pp. ~77. $5.00. To date, the role of modern logic in the development of Thomistic thought has been little more than negligible. The work of I. M. Bochenski in logistics has thus far been the dominant contribution, and that mainly in the history of formal logic. Now we have another significant study in the field of semantics, this time by a student of Rudolf Carnap and pointed directly at clarifying the prima via of St. Thomas. The result is as stimulating as the enterprise is unexpected. By reason of its heterogeneous background, Mr. Bryar's book is one that can be easily misunderstood. It must be read in the context of modern logical thought, particularly in the light of recent theories propounded by the University of Chicago school. Even then the mixture of scholastic terminology and technical expression peculiar to semiotics is a fecund source of confusion. Add to this the fact that the study is tentative, exploratory, and employs a style of writing that is so " conscious of itself " as to be extremely artificial, and the difficulty of comprehending the thesis becomes not inconsiderable. Yet the author sincerely addresses himself to a real problem that has merited the attention of numerous commentators in the Thomistic tradition . Moreover, he claims to throw light on the meaning of a most important text of the Angelic Doctor. For these reasons, if for none other, his work merits analysis and evaluation from the viewpoint of traditional logic. The complexity of Mr. Bryar's argument suggests that an exposition first be made of his general position and source material, then a description of the technical details of his systematic interpretative study, and finally a summary of his conclusions. These will then be set off against the traditional position in an attempt to evaluate the work as a contribution to current Thomistic thought. * * * The general position of the author may be highlighted by the following observations. He is not concerned directly with demonstrating God's existence. Rather he limits himself to the precise logical study of analyzing the meaning of St. Thomas' text, determining presuppositions and basic options, and ascertaining the interpretation of the prima via most consonant with his findings. His work is descriptive and explicative, not 269 270 BOOK REVIEWS argumentative. He does not reject traditional interpretations, nor does he intend to supplant them with this study. His aim is simply to elaborate a more or less neutral interpretative mechanism that would reconstruct the thought process implicit in St. Thomas' work. This he attempts through a study of the structure of the first twenty-six questions of the Prima Pars, which is the basis for his systematic interpretative study. The latter is only a hypothetical construction; yet it suggests three lines of meaning implicitly contained in St. Thomas' argument from motion. Thus the author concludes to a pluralistic interpretation of the prima via. The implementation of Mr. Bryar's theoretical plan depends heavily on his source material, viz., an analysis of the tract in the Summa entitled De Deo Uno, and, to a somewhat lesser extent, an exegesis of chapter thirteen of the first book of the Contra Gentiles (Appendix I). Space limitations prohibit an extensive report on either of these studies, yet some illustrations from the former will be of interest. For instance, relative to I, q, 2, a. 1, the author contrasts St. Thomas' fundamental option with one that would allow self-evident knowledge of God. As to a. 2, he notes that it builds up a knowledge of God's existence which is taken to involve no knowledge of God's essence, and he is prompted to ask what function demonstration quia will have in the case of setting up different answers to the question quid sit. Apart from the five ways in a. 3, he observes from the objections that St. Thomas takes a b~oad enough field of vision to embrace a God whose infinite goodness would exclude all evil from the world, or a God related to the world as nature to aU natural things. The particular...

The Logic of History

The Logic of History

The Psychology and Ethics of Spinoza. A Study in the History of Logic and Ideas.

The Psychology and Ethics of Spinoza. A Study in the History of Logic and Ideas.

The Teaching of Religion and the Democratic Ideal

M OST OF US who belong to this association have been accustomed to think of democracy as the ultimate, happy organization of society towards which the whole world was moving. It has been a kind of faith to which most American people have subscribed. We have believed in the educability of the individual and in his power both to control himself and with other free men to control the society to which he belongs. The progress of enlightenment would involve the adoption of the democratic ideal everywhere. Democracy, we thought, was the inevitable logic of history. But this faith has been badly shattered by the course of events in recent times. Not only in Europe is democracy regarded as a foolish and impractical ideal, but in America as well there is a widespread conviction that democracy has proved a failure. There are many reasons for this mood of disillusionment which has come over our people, but there are two contributing factors of particular importance. The first is the lack today of a frontier in America with all the opportunities which existed for people of courage and industry to develop the resources which were there. Heretofore we have placed great emphasis upon individual initiative. The self-made man, meaning usually the poor boy who has succeeded in becoming rich, has been regarded as the particular ornament of a democratic society. Opportunities for material success have abounded in the past, and therefore we have stressed the advancement of individuals at the expense of the equally important democratic principle of the responsibility which the individual owes to society. Now that there is no longer an expanding frontier, the kind of life which we believed to be characteristic of democracy is no longer possible except for a relatively few, and, as a result, we question the value of the system which seems to have failed us.

REVIEWS

Book reviews in this Article: The Logic of History. By C. G. Crump. Blessed Giles of Assisi. By Walter W. Seton. Municipal Records. By F. J. C. Hearnshaw (Helps for Students of History. Edited by C. Johnson, M.A., and J. P. Whitney Liverpool Town Books: Proceedings of Assemblies, Common Councils, Portmoot Courts, etc., 1550‐1882. Vol. I. 1550‐71. Edited for the Corporation of the City of Liverpool by J. A. Twemlow. Henry VII. By Gladys Temperley Rhyme and Revolution in Germany. A Study in German History, Life, Literature, and Character Main Currents of European History, 1815‐1915. By F. J. C. Hearnshaw. Documents of the Canadian Constitution, 1759‐1915. Selected and edited by W. P. M. Kennedy The Colonies and Imperial Federation: A Historical Sketch, 1754‐1919. By A. F. Hattersley. Boundaries in Europe and the Near East. By Sir Thomas Holdich Frontiers: a Study in Political Geography. By C. B. Fawcett

Reviews of Books

Journal Article Reviews of Books Get access Helps for Students of History. Edited by C. JOHNSON and J. P. WHITNEY. No. 1: Episcopal Registers of England and Wales, by R. C. FOWLER. No. 2 : Municipal Records, by F. J. C. HEARNSHAW. NO. 3 : Medieval Reckonings of Time, by R. L. POOLE. NO. 4: The Public Record Office, by C. JOHNSON. NO. 6: The Logic of History, by C. G. CRUMP. (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1918.) T. F. TOUT T. F. TOUT Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The English Historical Review, Volume XXXIV, Issue CXXXIV, April 1919, Pages 270–272, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/XXXIV.CXXXIV.270 Published: 01 April 1919

The Logic of History

The Logic of History