Quote:
Originally Posted by JM  Hi Brian, I just started reading "Introduction to Logic" by Harry Gensler. I also have "Intro to Logic" by Copi/Cohen [8th ed.] and didn't know which one to start with, since I just started reading Gensler a few days ago I'm re-thinking my Copi's textbook.
Which one should I read?
j |
I have Copi/Cohen and it's pretty good. I don't agree that the idea of "existential import" was an improvement to traditional Aristotelian logic (and I don't think Copi really tries to prove otherwise, at least not formally), but for getting your mind around the basic principles of logic, Copi is considered a standard.
I started off learning logic with Gordon Clark's
"Logic". It doesn't go into the depth or detail of Copi, and Clark uses his own notation (which can confuse people unfamiliar with it). However, I think Clark packs a lot of insight into his text. He never loses sight that logic is tied to philosophy. Modern logic seems to have lost touch with it's roots in Philosophy and it's more likely to be found under Mathematics and Computer Science. The result is that modern logic authors (like scientists) often have an empiricist world view underlying their thinking, but rarely examine their philosophical assumptions critically.