The (almost really) Complete Works of Lewis Carroll

Symbolic Logic by Lewis Carroll. Part I. Elementary

Dear Madam, or Sir,

Any one, who has to superintend the education of young people (say between 12 and 20 years of age), must have realised the importance of supplying them with healthy mental recreations, to occupy times when both brain and muscles have done their fair share of work for the day. The best possible resource, no doubt, is reading; and a taste for reading is quite the most valuable acquirement you can give to your pupil. But variety is essential, and many a boy or girl is glad to exchange the merely passive enjoyment of reading a book for something which will employ the hands as well as the eyes, and which will call out some form of mental activity. Under this heading may be reckoned such occupations as drawing, painting, &c., and sedentary games, such as chess, backgammon, &c.: also (what many young people keenly enjoy) the guessing of puzzles, which generally involves a certain amount of handiwork. And all games and puzzles (excepting of course whist) allow, and even encourage, talking—which in itself is one of the best and healthiest of mental recreations. Also many of them (and this is a most valuable property) will only yield the full enjoyment, that is to be got out of them, in return for a certain amount of painstaking. The chess-player, who has learned the true meaning of “whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might,” and who gives his full attention to the game, and tries to find the best solution for the problems that arise in it, will get ten times the enjoyment received by the languid, indolent player, who moves the pieces almost at random, and takes no interest whatever in winning or losing.

I claim, for Symbolic Logic, a very high place among recreations that have the nature of games or puzzles; and I believe that any one, who will really try to understand it, will find it more interesting and more absorbing than most of the games or puzzles yet invented. The reading of the book about it is a very small part of the business: the real occupation and the real enjoyment come when the reader has gained the power of solving for himself the fascinating problems of the Science. And this power is far sooner, and far more easily, acquired in Symbolic Logic than it is in the Science as taught in the ordinary text-books.

The occupation, of solving such problems, furnishes keen and inexhaustible enjoyment, even for the solitary student. But a still greater amount of pleasure may be obtained, when two or three students, of tolerably equal powers, agree to work it together. It adds enormously to one’s interest in such problems, to be able to talk them over with another: and the help it gives, in getting one’s own ideas clear on the subject, is simply invaluable.

Symbolic Logic has one unique feature, as compared with games and puzzles, which entitles it, I hold, to rank above them all. The accomplished backgammon player has received, no doubt, a great deal of enjoyment, well worth the winning, in the process of making himself a good player; but, when that object is attained, it is of no further use to him, except for the one purpose of playing more games, and winning more victories, and possibly becoming the Champion-player for his town or county. Now the accomplished Logician has not only enjoyed himself, all the time he was working up to that position, fully as much as the Champion-player has done; but he finds himself, when that position is won, the holder of an “Open Sesame!” to an inexhaustible treasure-house of varied interests. He may apply his skill to any and every subject of human thought; in every one of them it will help him to get clear ideas, to make orderly arrangement of his knowledge, and, more important than all, to detect and unravel the fallacies he will meet with in every subject he may interest himself in.

Among the popular ideas about Logic there are three special and most fallacious ones which have prevented its receiving anything like the attention which it deserves.

One is, that it is much too hard for average intellects; that only the exceptionally-gifted can make anything of it; and that it is quite beyond the reach of children.

Another is that even those, who do succeed in mastering its principles, find it hopelessly dry and uninteresting.

And a third objection is that its results are absolutely and entirely useless, and have no connection with the actual facts of life.

The first two objections may fairly be urged, I think, against Formal Logic. Some of the text-books of this Science might almost have been composed with the benevolent intention of furnishing, for the eager minds of children, the hardest work that could be devised—giving the maximum of fatigue with the minimum of result. As compared with Symbolic Logic, it is much as if a schoolmaster were to close his cricket-ground, and erect a treadmill for his boys instead!

Think of some complicated algebraical problem, which, if worked out with x, y, z, would require the construction of several intricate simultaneous equations, ending in an affected quadratic. Then imagine the misery of having to solve it in words only, and being forbidden the use of symbols. This will give you a very fair idea of the difference, in solving a Syllogism or Sorites, between the use of Symbolic Logic, and of Formal Logic as taught in the ordinary text-books.

As to the first popular idea—that Logic is much too hard for ordinary folk, and specially for children, I can only say that I have taught the method of Symbolic Logic to many children, with entire success. They learn it easily, and take real interest in it. High-School girls take to it readily. I have had classes of such girls, and also of the mistresses, who are of course yet more interesting pupils to deal with. When your little boys, or little girls, can solve Syllogisms, I fancy they will be much more eager to have fresh Pairs of Premisses supplied them, than any riddles you can offer them!

As to Symbolic Logic being dry, and uninteresting, I can only say, try it! I have amused myself with various scientific pursuits for some forty years, and have found none to rival it for sustained and entrancing attractiveness.

As to its being useless, I think I have already said enough.

In conclusion, let me point out that even those, who are obliged to study Formal Logic, with a view to being able to answer Examination-Papers in that subject, will find the study of Symbolic Logic most helpful for this purpose, in throwing light upon many of the obscurities with which Formal Logic abounds, and in furnishing a delightfully easy method of testing the results arrived at by the cumbrous process which Formal Logic enforces upon its votaries.

This is, I believe, the very first attempt (with the exception of my own little book, The Game of Logic, published in 1886, a very incomplete performance) that has been made to popularise this fascinating subject. It has cost me years of hard work: but if it should prove, as I hope it may, to be of real service to the young, and to be taken up, in High Schools and in private families, as a valuable addition to their stock of healthful mental recreations, such a result would more than repay ten times the labour that I have expended on it.

N.B. Books to be Given Away.

(1) For Village-Libraries, &c.

Mr. Lewis Carroll will be glad to receive applications for copies of the following books:—

Through the Looking-Glass

In the Sixtieth Thousand of this book, some of the pictures came out too black for good artistic effect, and Mr. Carroll decided to give the whole of them away, as they were not good enough to sell. There are still some on hand, which he will be glad to give for the use of Village-Libraries, &c., or to lend to invalids.

The Nursery Alice

In one impression of this book some of the pictures are too bright and gaudy, and these also Mr. Carroll has decided to give away, for the use of Kinder-Garten, or Infant Schools, or to lend to sick children.

Sylvie and Bruno: Sylvie and Bruno (Concluded)

These books are on sale, but the price (which he cannot affort to reduce) puts them beyond the reach of people with small means. He will be glad to give some copies for Village-Libraries, &c., or for reading aloud to children, or for lending to invalids.

Every application, for copies of the above, should be signed by some resident householder, and should contain a promise that the books shall be used for the purposes intended.

Applications should be addressed to Messrs. Macmillan and Co. Ltd., 29, Bedford Street, Covent Garden, and should contain stamps to cover the cost of postage, viz., for each separate volume 4½d.; for two volumes 6d.; for three 9d.; for the four volumes in one packet 10½d.

(2) For Sick Children Only.

Mr. Lewis Carroll has had special editions prepared, for this purpose, of “Alice in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking-Glass,” and has already given away hundreds of them to Hospitals, Homes, &c.

Applications, from Hospitals, &c., for these books, or for “The Nursery Alice” named above, should be addressed to himself, care of Messrs. Macmillan and Co. Ltd., and should be signed by some official of the Hospital, &c., and should state the number of children, capable of enjoying such books, who are there at once, the number of copies in hand, and also whether it possesses any funds with which such books could be purchased.