“Better that you ask why I hadn’t written more books than why I had.”
- Mark Twain
A Guide to Good Reasoning,
2nd Edition
A Guide to Good Reasoning has been described by reviewers as “far superior to any other critical reasoning text.” It shows with both wit and philosophical care how students can become good at everyday reasoning. It starts with attitude—with alertness to judgmental heuristics and with the cultivation of intellectual virtues. From there it develops a system for skillfully clarifying and evaluating arguments, according to four standards—whether the premises fit the world, whether the conclusion fits the premises, whether the argument fits the conversation, and whether it is possible to tell.
“…in the end, intellectual honesty is the best possible guide to good reasoning.” (final sentence, p. 475)
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Praise for A Good Guide to Reasoning
“In every way, I found Professor Wilson’s text to be far superior to any other critical reasoning text I am familiar with. …I know of no other text which presents the material so effectively. ”
— Peter Chad Finsterwald, Boston University
“This…is well-written, by someone who has thought carefully about these matters, and who has gone to considerable effort to gather a collection of real, interesting examples for each chapter of the text. I think that it is impressively done.”
— Robert G. Weingert, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne
“Over the years, I have used texts by Barker, Copi, Engel, and Hurley, but [this]is by far the best. It teaches exactly what every educated person needs to know about good reasoning, and it does so elegantly and efficiently.”
— Bob Archer, Harvard-Westlake School