Answer
(a) All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.
(b) All sheep are black. Mary's lamb is white. Therefore, this syllogism is invalid because the first premise is false.
(c) All elephants are animals. All animals are living beings. Therefore, all elephants are living beings.
Work Step by Step
(a) All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is mortal. This conclusion corresponds to observed reality because it is a logical deduction based on the two premises. The first premise is a universal statement that applies to all men, and the second premise identifies Socrates as a member of that category. The conclusion follows logically from these two premises because it is a necessary consequence of the first premise.
(b) All sheep are black. Mary's lamb is white. Therefore, this syllogism is invalid because the first premise is false. It is not true that all sheep are black, as there are many breeds of sheep with different colors. Therefore, the conclusion does not correspond to observed reality because it is based on a false premise.
(c) All elephants are animals. All animals are living beings. Therefore, all elephants are living beings. This conclusion corresponds to observed reality because it is a logical deduction based on the two premises. The first premise is a universal statement that applies to all elephants, and the second premise is a universal statement that applies to all animals. The conclusion follows logically from these two premises because it is a necessary consequence of both premises.
