But while in certain aspects of logical enquiry it is requisite to deal explicitly with propositions, it must never be forgotten that as logicians we are concerned with propositions only as the expressions of judgments; and there are numerous occasions when we have to go behind propositional forms and ask what are the fundamental characteristics of the judgments that they express.
47. The Abstract Character of Logic.—Reference has been made in the preceding section to the necessity for logical purposes of making our judgments precise. For only if they 69 are precise is it possible to determine with accuracy what are their logical implications considered either individually or in conjunction with one another. It has also been pointed out that we can make our judgments precise only by expressing them in propositional forms, the interpretation of which has been agreed upon.
But this is not without its disadvantages. Sometimes the full force of an actual judgment hardly admits of being expressed in words, and even the force of a proposition as understood may not be found exclusively in the words of which it composed, but may depend partly on the context in which it is placed. Hence the isolated proposition must frequently be regarded as in a sense an abstraction, leaving behind it some portion of the actual judgment for which it stands.
This is indeed much less true of the propositions of science than of those of everyday life; and the more fully a statement is independent of context the more fully may it be regarded as fulfilling its purpose from the scientific standpoint. Still the abstract character of logic must be frankly recognised. “Just as thought is abstract in its dealings with reality, so logic is abstract in its dealings with ordinary thought.”[75]
[75] Hobhouse, Theory of Knowledge, p. 7.
That they are in some degree abstractions is true not only of propositions, but also of inferences, as we have to deal with them in logic. Much of the reasoning of everyday life does not admit of expression in the form of definite premisses and conclusions such as would satisfy the canons of logic. The grounds upon which our conclusions are based are often so complex, and the influence which some of them exert upon our beliefs is so subtle and delicate, that they cannot be completely set forth. This will be realised at once if an attempt is made to apply the rules of logic to any ordinary inference; and an explanation is herein found why the illustrations given in logical text-books frequently appear so artificial and unreal.
It must be admitted that the abstract character of logic detracts to some extent from its utility as an art, though the extent of this drawback may easily be exaggerated. Regarded as a science, however, the value, of logic remains unimpaired. 70 Other sciences besides logic have to proceed by abstractions and separations that do not fully correspond to the complexities of nature; and this often becomes the more true the higher the stage that the science has reached. Its necessary abstractness does not prevent logic from analysing successfully the characteristics of the developed judgment or from determining the principles of valid reasoning. If we were to seek to treat logical problems without abstraction we should be in danger of destroying the scientific character of logic without achieving any valuable result even from the purely utilitarian point of view. It is of little value to criticise received systems without providing any new constructive system in their place.
48. Nature of the Enquiry into the Import of Propositions.—Under the general head of the import of propositions it is usual to include problems that are really very different in character.[76]
[76] Compare Mr W. E. Johnson in Mind, April, 1895, p. 242.
(1) There is, in the first place, the fundamental problem or series of problems as to what are the essential characteristics of judgments, and therefore of propositions as expressing judgments. The discussion of questions of this character must be based directly on psychological or philosophical considerations, and in the solutions nothing arbitrary or conventional can find a place.