Art of Deception: An Introduction to Critical Thinking

Now reissued for contemporary readers, this entertaining primer on critical thinking has been teaching people to think and speak more clearly for more than four decades.Do you know when you're being deceived? Can you trust the information coming from Washington, the media, and the Internet?This classic work on critical thinking uses a novel approach to teach the basics of informal logic. On the assumption that "it takes one to know one," the authors have written the book from the point of view of someone who wishes to deceive, mislead, or manipulate others. Having mastered the art of deception, readers will then be able to detect the misuse or abuse of logic when they encounter it in others -- whether in a heated political debate or while trying to evaluate the claims of a persuasive sales person. Using a host of real-world examples, the authors show you how to win an argument, defend a case, recognize a fallacy, see through deception, persuade a skeptic, and turn defeat into victory. Whether you're evaluating a social media rumor or you just want to become more adept at making your points and analyzing others' arguments, The Art of Deception--now with an updated preface--will give you the intellectual tools to become a more effective thinker and speaker. Helpful exercises and discussion questions are also included.

 Nicholas Capaldi, PhD, holds the Legendre-Soulé Distinguished Scholar Chair in Business Ethics at Loyola University of New Orleans. He is the author or editor of many books including Immigration: Debating the Issues; John Stuart Mill: A Biography; and Journeys Through Philosophy.

Miles Smit, PhD, works in the private sector in advisory, risk management, and consulting, and serves as the president of Civitas Canada. He is cofounder and codirector of the Petrarch Institute, a classical education provider, and holds a PhD in philosophy from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium.