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÷
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 These are:

ë? The law of identity

ë? The law of non-contradiction
ë? The law of excluded middle

These laws cannot be proved or disproved. In order to demonstrate them, they must be
assumed. To deny them is self-contradictory. They are presupposed in all rational -- that is,
consistent -- thought and discourse.

è
÷
   


      

  
                    
!" ! ! # ! !  #

To have an identity means to have a single identity: an object cannot have two identities.

r? c tree cannot be a telephone.

r? c dog cannot be a cat.

cn entity can have more than one characteristic, but any characteristic it has is a part of its
identity.

Y ! 

è.? The moon is eclipsed.

2.? Socrates is mortal.
3.? Man is a two-footed animal.
4.? c triangle is three-sided.
5.? cn elephant has four legs.
6.? The pure water is colorless.
7.? Pakistan has five provinces.
 Some have criticized this first principle on the basis that things change. For instance, in è790
one could make the statement: "The United States of cmerica is made up of è3 states." But
obviously such a statement is not true today. However, the fact of change in human affairs does
not negate this principle of logic. Statements which change over time are said to be elliptical or
incomplete statements. Thus, the statement "The United States of cmerica is made up of è3
states" is a partial formulation of the statement, "The United States of cmerica was made up of
è3 states in è790." Such a statement is as true today as it was in è790. Thus, as Copi said, "When
we confine our attention to complete or non elliptical formulations, the Principle of Identity is
perfectly true and unobjectionable."

÷
$%&  

÷
% 
    
      
  
      For example, the chair in my
living room, right now, cannot be made of wood and not made of wood at the same time. For
propositions; 
  ! !     
 ' %'

The law of non-contradiction states:

p: any statement

p ^ ~p = False

Y ! 

è.? It is raining outside and it is not raining outside.

2.? Judas hung himself and Judas didn't hang himself.
3.? I am stationary and I am not stationary.
4.? Man is two footed animal and man is not two footed animal.
5.? The pen is made of steel and the pen is not made of steel.
6.? Only one man understood me and he didn't understand me.
7.? I like English the most and I don't like English the most.

cll these statements include two contradictory statements; they cannot be true simultaneously.
÷
Y ( 

 ÷
       ! !      ! !    
! !   

  ! )!

Either p is true or p is false; one or the other, but not both at the same time.

p or not (p)

For example "Joe is bald, or Joe is not bald." is true.

Y ! 

Some examples which obviously obey the law of the excluded middle:

è.? Either he will get c grade or B.

2.? Either Socrates is mortal, or it is not the case that Socrates is mortal.
3.? Either the nobles of this country appear wealthy, in which case they can be taxed for
good; or they appear poor, in which case they are living frugally and must have immense
savings, which can be taxed for good.
4.? cn integer is either even or not even
5.? Either all Unicorns can do magic or there exists a Unicorn which cannot.
6.? Either it is raining or it is not raining


›  

0? http://orpheus.ucsd.edu/phenom/old/lawnon.html
0? http://zeidspex.blogspot.com/2008/02/law-of-non-contradiction.html
0? http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=law%20of%20noncontradiction
0? http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/articles/lawofcon.htm
0? http://www.experiencefestival.com/law_of_non-contradiction
0? http://www.tompotter.us/exmid.html
0? http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/20è0/03/three-laws-of-thought.html
0? http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Law_of_excluded_middle
0? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_excluded_middle
0? http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?ExcludedMiddle