Meaning of reductio ad absurdum | Babel Free

Definitions

The method of disproving a statement by assuming the statement is true and, with that assumption, arriving at a blatant contradiction.

uncountable, usually

Equivalents

Examples

““You, gentlemen, as representatives of that institution which recognizes only truths that are deduced from reductio ad absurdums will probably have⟳ no difficulty in perceiving the truth of this absurdity and hence be ready to excuse⟳ the outcome of it—my absence.””

“Constructing representations out of atoms that are already themselves representations cannot address the origins of the atoms per se. Careful pursuit of such approaches has yielded bizarre reductio ad absurdums such as the implication that virtually all concepts that human beings are capable of having are already in the genes.”

“One way to argue⟳ against a position is to demonstrate⟳ that it proves too much. Proponents of an HWR analysis of negligence may insist that the conceptual and normative arguments that have⟳ been directed against their project ultimately generate⟳ reductio ad absurdums suggesting that I have⟳ proved too much.”

CEFR level