1. Aristotle- The Father of Logic
Ancient Greek philosopher ( BC)
Student of Plato (who was student of Socrates)
Known as the father of logic because he was the first to develop a formalized system for reasoning
Observed that the validity of an argument can be determined by its structure (Standard Form/Syllogism)
Aristotle liked to make detailed observations of the world, taking notes and records of what he saw (dissect animals to learn more about anatomy)
This was unlike any philosopher before him as they did all of their work in their mind, thinking about their world, but not observing it.
Aristotle emphasized good reasoning combine with good evidence.

2. Aristotle’s Common Topics
A system Aristotle invented to help people discover possible evidence (basis of your premise) that could be used to support a conclusion
Five common topics are:
Definitions
Testimony
Comparison
Relationship
Circumstance

3. Aristotle's Common Topics
Topic One: Definitions
Done at the start of an argument/discussion
Two things must be defined
Your position
The key terms of your position
How you can define key terms
Genus- larger group to which the word belongs
Division- characteristics of the word that make it different from other species in its genus
Etymology- history or origin of the word
Description- Explain a word in greater detail than what is given in a definition, describe different types
Examples- closely related to description, focus on one instance that clearly illustrates the word you are trying to define
Synonyms/Antonyms- words that have similar and opposite meanings
Procedural/operational definition- describes how something happens, occurs or is accomplished

4. Aristotle's Common Topics
Topic Two: Comparison
Comparisons to previous knowledge/ understanding
How you can use comparison
Similarity- Compares two examples in order to draw a conclusion based on relevant similarities. Can be illuminating because they often compare abstract concepts to more familiar concepts
Difference- Examine the dissimilarities of examples
Degree- determine the relative worth of an example or choice (ie. Greater number is more desirable than a smaller number, if a thing does not exist where it is more likely, it will not exist where it is less likely)

5. Aristotle's Common Topics
Topic Three: Relationship
Examining how concepts relate to one another to construct better conclusions
How you can use relationship
Cause and Effect- draws a conclusion by demonstrating that one phenomenon caused another phenomenon to occur
Antecedent and Consequence- What naturally happens as a result of an action, “given this, what follows?”
Contraries- States that the action has the opposite effect, should contain an antonym word
Contradictories- completely denies the statement, add the word not before adjective or verb

6. Aristotle's Common Topics
Topic Four: Circumstance
Recognition of what circumstances are needed to construct the conclusion
How you can use circumstance
Possible and Impossible- Examines why something can or cannot occur or be done
Past and Future Fact- Examines what has happened in the past and what this means for present circumstances

7. Aristotle's Common Topics
Topic Five: Testimony
Using outside support for your argument
How you can use testimony
Authority- information from someone that is an authority on the subject
Testimonial- firsthand accounts of people’s experiences
Statistics- a number that represents a large quantity of examples
Maxims- wise saying that provides a general principal for living, don’t use as major support because often generalization not a rule or formula
Law or Precedent- laws, legal rulings, or similar cases

8. Application Activity
Describe your assigned common topic in your own words
Provide a concrete example of your common topic
Watch the courtroom scene from “A Few Good Men”
Provide a concrete example of your common topic from this scene