More Argument Recognition Exercises

A. Answers to WS3

1. (what God accepts we must accept)

2. (Nixon accepted a pardon)

3. (what people take is what is valuable)

4. (a cursed earth and liability to death were things threatened to Adam)

B. Enthymemes

1) I am an idealist because I believe that all that exists is spiritual.

 2) Achilles is brave so he must be deserving of the fair. 

3) If you're not happy, Lipton Tea is not in business. And we are very much in business.

C. Use of the a fortiori

Identify the distinguishing a fortiori element in the following passages: Heb. 2:1-3, Rom. 5:15; 8:32; Matt. 6:26-30; Acts 11:15-16.

Frame also notes that a fortiori arguments are not always used correctly:

Obviously, however, not all a fortiori arguments are sound. Consider this one. "Since the poor are entitled to free medical care, certainly the rich ought to be given the same." Or consider this one. "If God worked miracles prior to the closing of the canon, certainly He should do so even more afterwards to testify to the completion of His revelatory work." And here is another: "If getting baptized once is a means of grace, getting baptized many times is an even greater means of grace." You can see that this type of argument is not always cogent (Doctrine 276-277).

It is useful to inquire as to what has gone wrong in these examples. Why are some a fortiori's powerfully effective and why do other ones dreadfully fail?

In the first example, there is a lesser to greater principle in the level of wealth accumulated by poor and rich. But intuitively we sense that the a fortiori argument form does not work here. Why doesn't it work? It does not work because the poor and rich are not in the same relevant category of people in need (whereas, governors and presidents are in the same category as people in authority).

What is wrong in the multiple baptisms example? To be sure, many baptisms are "much more" in number that a single baptism. However, it is discredited by the following unstated and highly questionable enthymeme: "All means of grace are acts whose value increases mechanically by repetition in the amount of times they are performed."

The hidden assumption in the miracles example is that the number of miracles increases proportionally to the degree of completion of the canon. This is surely a dubious point. It is not the case that the number of miracles increases the closer we get to the close of the New Testament. If it were the case then we must affirm that there were more miracles in the time of John's writing of the Book of Revelation than in the time of Jesus. Or, it assumes that the need to have miracle testimony to the gospel is greater after the completion of the canon then before its completion. But this is questionable since the need for miracle testimony may be due to the fact that the canon was incomplete.

D.  Explain how the a fortiori argument form is justified by Paul's example in Romans 8:32.  Summarize the argument for argument that surfaces here.

E.  What are some distinct a fortiori arguments in Matthew 6:25-34?  Summarize the argument for argument that surfaces here.

F.  What is the enthymatic conclusion of Luke 24:39?

What is the larger/fuller argument when v. 39 is put in context of vs. 36-38?

Now what further implications can be drawn regarding the person of Christ, His work per this context, and the bearing of His work for believers?

Answers (to F)