The Role of Logic in Analyzing and Evaluating Argumentation

Abstract

What is the relationship between logic and argumentation theory? The answer to this question depends, of course, to a large extent on the way in which logic and argumentation theory are conceived and defined. Opting for different concepts of logic and argumentation theory could result in the view that there is no relationship at all, that logic and argumentation theory are the same, that logic is part of argumentation theory, that argumentation theory is part of logic, or that some more complex variant of either of these possibilities prevails. Acknowledging that other choices can be made, I start my attempt to answer the question about the relationship between logic and argumentation theory with a general indication of my understanding of logic and argumentation theory.