Beginning Logic

by E.J. Lemmon

"One of the most careful and intensive among the introductory texts that can be used with a wide range of students. It builds remarkably sophisticated technical skills, a good sense of the nature of a formal system, and a solid and extensive background for more advanced work in logic. . . . The emphasis throughout is on natural deduction derivations, and the text's deductive systems are its greatest strength. Lemmon's unusual procedure of presenting derivations before truth tables is very effective." --Sarah Stebbins, The Journal of Symbolic Logic

Genres: Philosophy, Logic, Nonfiction, School, Mathematics, Science, Reference

235 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1965

Reviews

[Nathan Ormond]

In general a very good introduction to logic. Perhaps a little outdated now. I generally find natural deduction a bit frustrating when other methods seem to follow a simpler and less error-prone algorithm and are easier to learn! Also the layout of the book is terrible which doesnt do justice to some of the brilliant content. Some terminology is deliberately used in an incorrect way just for this book, for example validity and soundness; there is no good reason to do this and it just adds to someones confusion as they are learning the subject.
On the positive side lots of exercises... on the negative side no answers!

[Rickeclectic]

Very good beginning textbook on logic. I used it for course I helped teach long ago. Moves at a reasonable pace. Probably easier to learn than most logic books covering symbolic logic, but may still need the help of a teacher or logic friend.

[Wendy Wolpert-DeWitt]

Lemmon is clear, concise, and no nonsense in his presentation of using well-formed formulas and rules to create a comprehensive system of symbolic logic.

[Gregg Smith]

A little dry

[Nataliia Viatkina]

Its a really good textbook for beginners among other good textbooks for beginners!

[Linda (un)Conventional Bookworms]

Explains in a very clear way how to use propositional calculus in order to verify the validity of an argument. There are still some things I have difficulty with, and I might have to read some more stuff in order to be ready for my exam in logic on Feb 3rd.

[Travis Johnson]

This book definitely gave a solid foundation for later proofs-based classes.

[Quentin]

Relationship status: complicated. All things considered, it is not a bad text. The information is there. The old 50s era sexism should be eliminated.

[Abbey Young]

An interesting read. All concepts are broken down in a very clear way.

[Reena]

great intro to logic