Here's an example of an argument that is strong, yet not valid. "The sun is out, so it can't be nighttime." It is a strong argument. The sun typically shows itself during the daytime, but this argument is not valid. Closer to the poles (of the earth), sometimes they will get 24 hours of sunlight, and therefore the sun will be out at nighttime. Since the conclusion is possibly false, the argument is not valid. However, in most cases, this statement will be true, making the argument strong.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Strong Versus Valid Arguments
We already know that if an argument has premises and a conclusion that are true, then the argument is valid, and therefore very good. Every valid argument is good. The term "strong" comes into play when the conclusion can be false, therefore making the argument invalid. It depends on technically how false the conclusion is. If the conclusion is nowhere possible, then the argument is invalid and poor. If the conclusion is any bit possible, then it is strong. In short, an argument does not have to be valid to be strong. It has to be strong to be valid.
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I liked your definition of the types of arguments in your first paragraph. It made my understanding of the concept clearer. I was a bit confused on what a valid and strong argument was but have a clearer understanding of the distinction of the two now. Your example of a strong argument that isn't valid but strong is easy to grasp and helped me understand the two better. One would assume that when the sun was out it wouldn't be night time. Your example of the poles in this situation and how they sometimes receive sunlight during the night makes the argument clearly not valid, but instead only a strong argument.
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