An Example of Dilogic

Theses A and B below represent the traditional complementary pair, Form and Freedom, as they apply to the definition of daytime and nighttime. Notice the relationships between the cells in the table:

  • Cell -B on the lower left contains an exaggeration of the thesis in cell A.
  • Cell -A on the lower right contains an exaggeration of the thesis in cell B.
  • The diagonal cells are antitheses.
  • The two theses in the upper cells (A and B) taken together offer a complementary synthesis that can be affirmed without contradiction.

    • Daytime and Nighttime

    A: Form: Usage of the terms 'daytime' and 'nighttime' is valid even though they cannot be precisely defined. People generally understand what these terms mean.


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    B: Freedom: Strictly speaking, it is not possible to precisely define daytime and nighttime; there is a period of twilight that makes any such distinction somewhat arbitrary.


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    -B: Exaggeration of form: We must define terms precisely; there must be an absolute distinction between daytime and nighttime.


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    -A: Exaggeration of freedom: There are only shades of twilight; there is no such thing as 'daytime' or 'nighttime'.


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    Overview of this diagram

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