Customer Reviews

Introduction to Logic

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For the beginner, there's no better book to begin one's excursion into logic, both deductive and inductive, formal and informal, syllogistic and mathematical, propositional as well as predicate calculus. There is excellent competition, such as Bates' Introduction to Logic and Lemmon's book by the same name. But these books are limited in their scope, and not always as didactic and insightful as the Copi work. This book is certainly not exhaustive of all logical norms and forms, but it is quite comprehensive. I know of no other book which is so thoroughly diversified in the treatment of all logical styles and methods, and which does so with greater clarity and elegance of style. I wish this had been my textbook upon taking formal logic courses years ago; it is clearly superior to literally dozens of others that are either too simplistic or over the head of most beginning logicians.

This textbook is the most valuable I've ever read. It covers all the basic stuff, like fallacies, syllogisms, truth-functional logic, and second-order predicate calculus, omitting only cutting edge stuff like modal and fuzzy logic--and gives full, lucid, elegant explanations. What's more, it shows you how logic applies to the real world by using a variety of interesting examples--something MY logic professor never bothered doing. I can guarantee you that, if you read this book carefully from cover to cover and do all the exercises and PRACTICE applying them, you will become a much smarter, more effective person. (Example: after working through this book, I was able to score in the 99th percentile on the LSAT). Anyone planning on becoming a lawyer, a scientist, or even a journalist will acquire extensive and essential analytical skills by using Copi's magnificent textbook.

Logic is not just for Spock; deduction (which, if you read this book, you'll discover is rather different) is not just for Sherlock Holmes. Many if not most students of philosophy over the past 50 years have had their beginning logic training from an edition of this book, 'Introduction to Logic' by Irving M. Copi, now in its eleventh edition, also now with a co-author listed, Carl Cohen.

I first learned logic in a two-semester sequence through the philosophy department at my university from the fifth edition of Copi's text, supplemented by other material from Copi and a few others on symbolic logic. Logic was required of philosophy majors; it was strongly recommended of majors in sciences and mathematics; it was preferred for students in social sciences. Indeed, the principles of logic contained in Copi's text would not be out of place in most any discipline.

This introductory text is also recommended reading for those preparing for major placement examinations, such as the LSAT and the MCAT. Learning how to think, and recognising typical and non-so-typical flaws in argumentation and reasoning are vital in many professions; the applications for law and medicine are fairly clear.

The text is divided into different sections, including Language, Induction, and Deduction. Language issues look at aspects such as definitions, informal fallacies in language, the question of meaning, truth and validity, and how to recognise argument forms. Deduction, what Sherlock Holmes always claims to be engaging, is a method whereby the validity of the premises provide the truth of the conclusion. In fact, Holmes usually engages in Inductive reasoning, including arguments by analogy and establishing probabilities, but not certainties.

This book beyond the introductory chapters on language arguments engages in symbolic logic -- rather like mathematics, it uses non-linguistic tools to work out the framework. The pieces of symbolic logic (fairly standard across the discipline, like mathematics) are introduced in various stages as inductive and deductive reasoning are developed.

Copi and Cohen look at real-life applications, particularly as logic relates to scientific reasoning and social science reasoning. While this is not a mathematics text, it introduces some elements useful in mathematics, particularly in probability and in elements used in statistical reasoning.

This text can be used for self-study, as some of the exercises are worked out in the back. There are also study guides available that have been produced for earlier editions; they are nonetheless useful, as much of the material remains the same from one edition to another.

A great text!

I bought this book (along with the study guide) and began self-studying the material to improve my logical ability. The book is relatively easy to understand even for novices with no prior training in logic and uses examples that are entertaining and interesting. The answers to select homework questions (about 1/4) are in the back so I would suggest that for self-study, either the study guide (which includes another 1/4) or the complete answer guide should also be purchased. The text itself is very fun to go through and I think Copi and Cohen do an amazing job as teachers. For those planning on taking the LSAT, this book may prove more beneficial than a test prep course if you want to understand the actual reasoning behind the test and not just regurgitate formulaic test-taking strategies.

All I can do is echo the many enthusiastic reviews this book has already received. Copi covers a wide array of logics, formal and informal, classical and modern, and demonstrates their applications using real-life examples drawn from science, political journalism, and the law. He is lucid, nuanced, and insightful. Reading this remarkable textbook is the equivalent of taking introductory courses in symbolic logic, rhetoric, philosophy of science, and legal reasoning. I learned more from this one book than from an entire year at UC Berkeley. It's a keeper!

Few books have been as influential in my academic career as this text. There is a very good reason why it has been published and purchased for over 30 years: excellence continues to sell. You must study this text. It is not a weekend read. It is an intoduction to a powerful, timeless and significant area of scholarship. True, in order to appreciate this book you must be willing to dedicate a fixed amount of time for serious study. Your instuctor must understand the subject also; a teaching assistant may not do the text justice. Having said that, it is a text and course of study that any serious college student can master. You do not need to be an engineering or math/science major to master the topic or enjoy the contents. Moreover, it can become a text you do not resell. Rather you will want to keep it on your shelf for many years to remind yourself of the intellectual acumen possible from dedicated and disciplined thinking. The endeavor will bear fruit for a lifetime. One caveat: after studying this book you may find yourself impatient with others who engage in unreasonable and illogical reasoning. But then, in important projects, do they really count?

As I look back over my 35 years in education, as student and professor, few books have profoundly empowered me to meet the challenge of the "market" as this has. After you read this book you will never think the same. Once you become empowered you can never again be weak. Thanks to Copi I have vision where others are blind; I can make decisions with speed and grace while other stumble, fall and run in circles; I understand the symmetry and order of life while others still cannot, after long last, "get it". Read this text and keep it. As a college text it certainly has proven its classic value. It should however be kept as a reference text next to your computer, dictionary, thesaurus and bible. For the professional logician it is an excellent springboard. If however this is the only book you read on the subject you will be enlightened richly and irreversibly.

I never saw the previous editions of this book (picked up the 9th ed.) and I believe that originally Copi was the only author, so I don't know whether Cohen raised or merely maintained the standard, but it is a very high standard indeed. I have another of Copi's older books (Symbolic logic) and it too is excellent, but this one is more generally useful and of course, broader in scope. Most unusually for a respectable size of textbook, this one permits one to read and work all the way through it for entertainment, as I did while commuting by rail a few years ago.

The coverage is good, the style is easy and clear, the material is sound and as an introduction to the field the book is excellent. The only hazard is that tyros working their way through may be fooled into thinking that now they "know logic" (No, this is NOT a hypothetical problem; I have encountered it in practice.)

But one can't allow for every kind of idiot, not even the predominant kinds.

If I were to propose any improvement to the copy I bought, it would be the addition (possibly in an appendix?) of a broader discussion of less conventional fields such as paraconsistent logic.

Overall I recommend the book highly and I am not lending out my copy.

I taught many years of logic and I have used Copi's textbook since its fourth edition. There is simply no other logic textbook better than this one, although many books are equally good. If you are motivated to study logic by yourself, this is probably the only one you should consider to buy. In addition to Copi's book, I add axiomatic set theory to math students and Boolean algebra to EECS students.

As a former philosophy student, I used this text in my introduction to logic class. Needless to say, I found the text easy to understand and it gradually introduced increasingly complex arguments for the student to consider. Each reader needs to be attune to the details in the text, but the exercises at the end of each section help implement the new-found knowledge.

Even after taking the course in logic, I still frequently find myself referring to this text, especially when I am developing my own arguments, either symbolically or in language. In everyday normal conversation, individuals engage in arguments. As this text teaches, it is important to understand the structures and functions of arguments. If you can understand the innate nature of arguments, either your own or another person's, then it becomes an invaluable tool to further develop and implement your arguments and detect fallacies.

To each logician, the most exciting section deals with fallacies. This book reviews over 30 different fallacies and uses examples to help the reader understand the where the errors in reasoning occurred.

Many philosophy professors, as I have learned, really regard Copi as the official authority in logic. Very few philosophers and logicians dislike Copi-style logic. Because this text implements many years of instruction and study in logic from Copi, it would follow that this text is an excellent source to introduce students to the world of logic. Oh, and logic really isn't something to be scared of anyway. We use it everyday. Some people just use it better than others. This is a great way be classified with the "better" group.