[Inquiry] Re: Introduction to Inquiry Driven Systems

[Jon Awbrey]

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INTRO.  Note 28

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| NB.  I am going to skip ahead, as Items 2.3 through 2.5 of the Outline need
| some work that I am not ready to do just yet, so I'll move on to Chapter 3.

3.  Inquiry and Analogy

This Chapter discusses C.S. Peirce's treatment of analogy,
placing it in relation to his overall theory of inquiry.
The first order of business is to introduce the three
elementary types of reasoning that Peirce adopted
from classical logic.  In Peirce's analysis both
inquiry and analogy are complex programs of
reasoning which develop through stages of
these three types, although normally in
different orders.

3.1.  Three Types of Reasoning

3.1.1.  Types of Reasoning in Aristotle

[omitted]

3.1.2.  Types of Reasoning in C.S. Peirce

Here we present one of Peirce's earliest treatments of
the three types of reasoning, from his Harvard Lectures
of 1865 "On the Logic of Science".  It illustrates how
one and the same proposition might be reached from three
different directions, as the end result of an inference
in each of the three modes.

| We have then three different kinds of inference:
|
| Deduction  or inference 'à priori',
|
| Induction  or inference 'à particularis',
|
| Hypothesis or inference 'à posteriori'.
|
| C.S. Peirce, CE 1, p. 267.

| If I reason that certain conduct is wise
| because it has a character which belongs
| 'only' to wise things, I reason 'à priori'.
|
| If I think it is wise because it once turned out
| to be wise, that is, if I infer that it is wise on
| this occasion because it was wise on that occasion,
| I reason inductively ['à particularis'].
|
| But if I think it is wise because a wise man does it,
| I then make the pure hypothesis that he does it
| because he is wise, and I reason 'à posteriori'.
|
| C.S. Peirce, CE 1, p. 180.
|
| Charles Sanders Peirce, "Harvard Lectures 'On the Logic of Science' (1865)",
|'Writings of Charles S. Peirce:  A Chronological Edition, Volume 1, 1857-1866',
| Peirce Edition Project, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, IN, 1982.

Suppose we make the following assignments:

A  =  "Wisdom",
B  =  "a certain character",
C  =  "a certain conduct",
D  =  "done by a wise man",
E  =  "a certain occasion".

Recognizing that a little more concreteness will aid the understanding,
let us make the following substitutions in Peirce's example:

B  =  "Benevolence", a certain character,
C  =  "Contributes to Charity", a certain conduct,
E  =  "Earlier today", a certain occasion.

The converging operation of all three reasonings is shown in Figure 5.

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| ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| `D ("done by a wise man") ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` o ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` `\* ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` \ * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` `\` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` \ ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` `\` ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` \ ` ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` `\` ` ` * A ("a wise act")` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` \ ` ` ` o ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` `\` ` `/| * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` ` \ ` / | ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` ` `\`/` | ` ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` ` ` . ` | ` ` ` o B ("benevolence", a certain character)` |
| ` ` ` ` ` ` `/ \` | ` ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` ` / ` \ | ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` `/` ` `\| * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` / ` ` ` o ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` `/` ` ` * C ("contributes to charity", a certain conduct) ` |
| ` ` ` ` / ` ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` `/` ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` / ` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` `/` * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` / * ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` `/* ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` o ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| `E ("earlier today", a certain occasion)` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
| ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` |
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Figure 5.  A Thrice Wise Act

The common proposition that concludes each argument
is AC, to wit, "contributing to charity is wise".

Deduction could have obtained the Fact AC from
the Rule AB, "benevolence is wisdom", along with
the Case BC, "contributing to charity is benevolent".

Induction could have gathered the Rule AC, after a manner of
saying that "contributing to charity is exemplary of wisdom",
from the Fact AE, "the act of earlier today is wise", along
with the Case CE, "the act of earlier today was an instance
of contributing to charity".

Abduction could have guessed the Case AC, in a style of expression
stating that "contributing to charity is explained by wisdom", from
the Fact DC, "contributing to charity is done by this wise man", and
the Rule DA, "everything that is wise is done by this wise man".  Thus,
a wise man, who happens to do all of the wise things that there are to
do, may nevertheless contribute to charity for no good reason, and even
be known to be charitable to a fault.  But all of this notwithstanding,
on seeing the wise man contribute to charity we may find it natural to
conjecture, in effect, to consider it as a possibility worth examining
further, that charity is indeed a mark of his wisdom, and not just the
accidental trait or the immaterial peculiarity of his character -- in
essence, that wisdom is the "reason" that he contributes to charity.

Jon Awbrey

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inquiry e-lab: http://stderr.org/pipermail/inquiry/
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