Chapter Six

CHAPTER SIX
CATEGORICAL
PROPOSITIONS
Lesson 1: General Introduction
• A categorical proposition is a statement that relates two sets,
classes, groups or categories which are presented in their
subject or predicate positions that could be connected based on
inclusion (partial/whole) or exclusion (partial/whole) relations.
What is Categorical Propositions?
• The term category or categorical, in this respect, refers to set
of things, such as, human beings, animals, plants, workers,
ladies, and so on. In a categorical proposition, these and other
set of things appears in the subject and predicate part of a
proposition.
• Every complete sentence/statement contains two parts: a subject
and a predicate. The subject is what (or whom) the sentence is
about. The predicate tells something about the subject. The
predicate of the sentence contains the verb.
• The term proposition refers to the information content or
meaning of a statement. However, to avoid inconvenience, we can
use the terms statement and proposition interchangeably for this
purpose.
• Categorical propositions are in general simple, easy or plain
statements that relate two classes of things based on the rule of
exclusion or inclusion principles.
Here are some examples of categorical propositions:
• Every human being is mortal
• Nothing that is a human which is eternal
• There exists a fish that is a shark.
• There are plants which are not edible.
All the above statements are categorical propositions. This is due to the
fact that in each statement two sets of things are related either in the
form of inclusion or exclusion.
In the first example, two set of things are given: human being (which is
the subject of the statement) and mortal (the predicate of the statement).
1.1 Standard-Forms of Categorical Proposition
• The standard form of categorical propositions is designed in
accordance with the rules of the partial or whole inclusion and
exclusion of the two classes stated in the subject and predicate
of the proposition.
1. The principle of total inclusion: The whole subject class is
included in the predicate class.
Example: All men are mortal.
All mammals are animals.
• And we see that these two classes (human beings and mortal beings)
are related based on inclusion relation, that is, without exception all
human beings are included part of in the class of mortal beings.
• There are exactly four types of categorical propositions:
 Those that assert that the whole subject class is included in the
predicate class
 Those that assert that part of the subject class is included in the
predicate class
 Those that assert that the whole subject class is excluded from the
predicate class
 Those that assert that part of the subject class is excluded from the
predicate class.
1.1 Standard-Forms of Categorical Proposition
• The standard form of categorical propositions is designed in
accordance with the rules of the partial or whole inclusion and
exclusion of the two classes stated in the subject and predicate
of the proposition.
1. The principle of total inclusion: The whole subject class is
included in the predicate class.
Example: All men are mortal.
All mammals are animals.
2. The principle of total exclusion : The whole subject class is
excluded from the predicate class.
Example: No Muslims are Christians.
No blacks are white.
3. The principle of partial inclusion : Partially the subject class
is included in the predicate class.
Example: Some politicians are liars.
Some students are lazy.
4. The principle of partial exclusion: Partially the subject class
is excluded from the predicate class.
Example:
• Some snakes are not poisonous.
• Some plants are not edible.
• Some Ethiopians are not friendly
1.2 The Components of Categorical Propositions
• proposition or statement is a sentence that is either true or
false.
• This being the case, categorical proposition is defined as a
proposition that relates two classes, or categories.
• components of a categorical proposition Includes:
 Quantifier = ‗All‘, ‗No‘ and ‗Some‘ indicate the quantity or
amount of the subject class.
 Subject term = any term (word) or phrase that consists of set
of things
 Copula = ‗Are‘ and are ‗not‘. The Latin copula is a sentential
connective that relates the subject and predicate terms.
 Predicate term – A term consisting set of things, which has
some kind of relation with the subject term.
 Consider the following example:
All members of the Ethiopian Medical Association are people

holding degrees from recognized academic institutions. This
standard-form categorical proposition is analyzed as follows:
 Quantifier: all
 Subject term: members of the Ethiopian Medical Association
 Copula: are
 Predicate term: people holding degrees from recognized
academic institutions
2: Attributes of Categorical Propositions: Quality,
Quantity, and Distribution
A. Quality: It refers to those set of things stated in the subject
term that are included or excluded from those set of things
stated in the predicate term.
If the subject term refers to those classes of things, which are
included (partially/entirely) in the predicate term, the proposition
is said to be affirmative, while if the subject term refers to those
classes of things that are excluded (partially/entirely) the
proposition is said to be negative.
• See the following example:
B. Quantity: The quantity of a categorical proposition is
determined by the amount or quantity of those set of things stated
in the subject term.
Accordingly, if the subject term refers entirely, the quantity of the
proposition is said to be universal, whereas, if the amount of the
subject class is stated partially, the quantity of the proposition is
said to be particular.
See the following example:
• According to the quality and quantity of categorical
propositions, logicians devised letter names of the four
propositions
• The four letter names: A, E, I and O are devised to represent
the four standard forms of categorical propositions and it is
summarized as follows.
Example: Some students are not clever……By which letter we
can represent this proposition?
C. Distribution: Reading assigment
3.1 Representing Categorical Propositions in
Diagrams
• the nineteenth-century logician John Venn developed a system
of diagrams to represent the information they express.
• These diagrams have come to be known as Venn diagrams.
• Venn diagram is an arrangement of overlapping circles in
which each circle represents the class denoted by a term in a
categorical proposition.
• the Venn diagram for a single categorical proposition consists
of two overlapping circles.
• See page 232 and 233 on the module

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CHAPTER SIX

All members of the Ethiopian Medical Association are people

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