--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Bad reasoning as well as good reasoning…" description: "\"Bad reasoning as well as good reasoning is possible; and this fact is the foundation of the practical side of logic.\" — Charles Sanders Peirce" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/charles-sanders-peirce-5105_foundation_bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning_576498.png" --- # Bad reasoning as well as good reasoning is possible; and… ![“Bad reasoning as well as good reasoning is possible; and this fact is the foundation of the practical side of logic.” quote by Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/charles-sanders-peirce-5105_foundation_bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning_576498.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/charles-sanders-peirce-5105_foundation_bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning_576498.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/charles-sanders-peirce-5105_foundation_bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning_576498.png) > “Bad reasoning as well as good reasoning is possible; and this fact is the foundation of the practical side of logic.” [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Logic allows both sound and flawed arguments; recognizing this duality is essential for practical reasoning. **In simple terms:** Both good and bad reasoning exist; understanding this helps practical logic. Key Takeaway Identify and separate sound arguments from fallacies. Themes logic reasoning practicality Mood analytical critical Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - debate - academic writing - decision making - problem solving Key Concepts epistemology critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How do you test an argument's validity? - What safeguards can prevent faulty logic? A Different Perspective Bad reasoning can undermine conclusions even when good reasoning is present. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Logic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/logic/) [Reasoning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reasoning/) ## Related quotes > [Logic is essentially a tool for getting at truth; it is the tool, for without it no reasoning is possible in any field of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-oderberg/logic-is-essentially-a-tool-for-getting-at-truth-it-is-the-tool-for/) David Oderberg > [The philosophy of reasoning, to be complete, ought to comprise the theory of bad as well as of good reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/the-philosophy-of-reasoning-to-be-complete-ought-to-comprise-the/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [“We should not expect individuals to produce good, open-minded, truth-seeking reasoning, particularly when self-interest or reputational concerns are in play. But if you put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-haidt/we-should-not-expect-individuals-to-produce-good-open-minded-truth/) [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) > [“... for although people can be made worse off by all other gifts, correct reasoning alone can only be for the good.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gottfried-wilhelm-leibniz/for-although-people-can-be-made-worse-off-by-all-other-gifts-correct/) [Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gottfried-wilhelm-leibniz/) > [At the very smallest wheel of our reasoning it is possible for a handful of questions to break the bank of our answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-machado/at-the-very-smallest-wheel-of-our-reasoning-it-is-possible-for-a/) [Antonio Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-machado/) > [Pretty much, you point to a problem and good reasoning about why people are doing what they are doing and what constraints they face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-bueno-de-mesquita/pretty-much-you-point-to-a-problem-and-good-reasoning-about-why/) [Bruce Bueno de Mesquita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-bueno-de-mesquita/) > [“But if you put individuals together in the right way, such that some individuals can use their reasoning powers to disconfirm the claims of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-haidt/but-if-you-put-individuals-together-in-the-right-way-such-that-some/) [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) > [“if you put individuals together in the right way, such that some individuals can use their reasoning powers to disconfirm the claims of others,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heath/if-you-put-individuals-together-in-the-right-way-such-that-some/) [Joseph Heath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heath/) > [Among the minor, yet striking characteristics of mathematics, may be mentioned the fleshless and skeletal build of its propositions; the peculiar difficulty, complication, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/among-the-minor-yet-striking-characteristics-of-mathematics-may-be/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Mathematics is distinguished from all other sciences except only ethics, in standing in no need of ethics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/mathematics-is-distinguished-from-all-other-sciences-except-only/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Theoretically, I grant you, there is no possibility of error in necessary reasoning. But to speak thus "theoretically," is to uselanguage in a Pickwickian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/theoretically-i-grant-you-there-is-no-possibility-of-error-in/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [Trying to understand the way nature works involves a most terrible test of human reasoning ability. It involves subtle trickery, beautiful tightropes of logic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/trying-to-understand-the-way-nature-works-involves-a-most-terrible/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [“Death makes its own choices. Has reasoning an order has a taste…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelo-tsanatelis/death-makes-its-own-choices-has-reasoning-an-order-has-a-taste/) [Angelo Tsanatelis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelo-tsanatelis/) > [Each Act of Parliament intended to address harassment and discrimination has faced objections on the basis of 'you'll never be able to prove...' and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-field/each-act-of-parliament-intended-to-address-harassment-and/) [Tim Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-field/) ## More by Charles Sanders Peirce > [If we are to define science, ... it does not consist so much in knowing, nor even in "organized knowledge," as it does in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/if-we-are-to-define-science-it-does-not-consist-so-much-in-knowing/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [It will sometimes strike a scientific man that the philosophers have been less intent on finding out what the facts are, than on inquiring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/it-will-sometimes-strike-a-scientific-man-that-the-philosophers-have/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [One will meet, for example, the virtual assumption that what is relative to thought cannot be real. But why not, exactly? Red is relative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/one-will-meet-for-example-the-virtual-assumption-that-what-is/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Generality is, indeed, an indispensable ingredient of reality; for mere individual existence or actuality without any regularity whatever is a nullity. Chaos is pure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/generality-is-indeed-an-indispensable-ingredient-of-reality-for-mere/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [... and it is probably that there is some secret here which remains to be discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/and-it-is-probably-that-there-is-some-secret-here-which-remains-to-be/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Our whole past experience is continually in our consciousness, though most of it sunk to a great depth of dimness. I think of consciousness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/our-whole-past-experience-is-continually-in-our-consciousness-though/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Theoretically, I grant you, there is no possibility of error in necessary reasoning. But to speak thus "theoretically," is to uselanguage in a Pickwickian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/theoretically-i-grant-you-there-is-no-possibility-of-error-in/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Looking out of my window this lovely spring morning I see an azalea in full bloom. No, no! I do not see that; though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/looking-out-of-my-window-this-lovely-spring-morning-i-see-an-azalea/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Fate then is that necessity by which a certain result will surely be brought to pass according to the natural course of events however…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/fate-then-is-that-necessity-by-which-a-certain-result-will-surely-be/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [If man were immortal he could be perfectly sure of seeing the day when everything in which he had trusted should betray his trust,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/if-man-were-immortal-he-could-be-perfectly-sure-of-seeing-the-day/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [Some think to avoid the influence of metaphysical errors, by paying no attention to metaphysics; but experience shows that these men beyond all others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/some-think-to-avoid-the-influence-of-metaphysical-errors-by-paying-no/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [The percept is the reality. It is not in propositional form. But the most immediate judgment concerning it is abstract. It is therefore essentially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/the-percept-is-the-reality-it-is-not-in-propositional-form-but-the/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [There never was a sounder logical maxim of scientific procedure than Ockham's razor: Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem. That is to say; before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/there-never-was-a-sounder-logical-maxim-of-scientific-procedure-than/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [And what, then, is belief? It is the demi-cadence which closes a musical phrase in the symphony of our intellectual life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/and-what-then-is-belief-it-is-the-demi-cadence-which-closes-a-musical/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [A hypothesis is something which looks as if it might be true and were true, and which is capable of verification or refutation by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/a-hypothesis-is-something-which-looks-as-if-it-might-be-true-and-were/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) [Explore all 103 Charles Sanders Peirce quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) ## More Foundation quotes > [Love is the foundation from which your decisions about your life should be made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-the-foundation-from-which-your-decisions-about-your-life/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You can't have the fruits without the roots. It's the principle of sequencing: Private Victories proceed Public Victories. Self-mastery and self-discipline are the foundation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-covey/you-can-t-have-the-fruits-without-the-roots-it-s-the-principle-of/) [Stephen Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-covey/) > [We have a fear of facing ourselves. That is the obstacle. Experiencing the innermost core of our existence is very embarrassing to a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-have-a-fear-of-facing-ourselves-that-is-the-obstacle-experiencing/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [A face is too slight a foundation for happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wortley-montagu/a-face-is-too-slight-a-foundation-for-happiness/) [Mary Wortley Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wortley-montagu/) > [In comparative terms, there's no poverty in America by a long shot. Heritage Foundation political scientist Robert Rector has worked up figures showing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/in-comparative-terms-there-s-no-poverty-in-america-by-a-long-shot/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Trust is the foundation of real teamwork (there is nothing touchy-feely about this).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-lencioni/trust-is-the-foundation-of-real-teamwork-there-is-nothing-touchy/) [Patrick Lencioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-lencioni/) > [A loving family provides the foundation children need to succeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-bunning/a-loving-family-provides-the-foundation-children-need-to-succeed/) [Jim Bunning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-bunning/) > [Everyone who makes music is a good collaborator at their foundation because in order to make music, you have to connect to it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/everyone-who-makes-music-is-a-good-collaborator-at-their-foundation/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [The laws keep up their credit, not by being just, but because they are laws; 'tis the mystic foundation of their authority; they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/the-laws-keep-up-their-credit-not-by-being-just-but-because-they-are/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [I was raised playing music in coffeehouses and I feel that was the foundation for my career. I think it is important that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/i-was-raised-playing-music-in-coffeehouses-and-i-feel-that-was-the/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [The foundation of the Christian's peace is everlasting; it is what no time, no change can destroy. It will remain when the body dies;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-edwards/the-foundation-of-the-christian-s-peace-is-everlasting-it-is-what-no/) [Jonathan Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-edwards/) > [Butter, cream, and bacon. That's such a great foundation right there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ree-drummond/butter-cream-and-bacon-that-s-such-a-great-foundation-right-there/) [Ree Drummond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ree-drummond/) > [God established the family as the foundation of civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-evans/god-established-the-family-as-the-foundation-of-civilization/) [Tony Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-evans/) > [To succeed, you will soon learn, as I did, the importance of a solid foundation in the basics of education - literacy, both verbal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/to-succeed-you-will-soon-learn-as-i-did-the-importance-of-a-solid/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [Coral reefs represent some of the worlds most spectacular beauty spots, but they are also the foundation of marine life: without them many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheherazade-goldsmith/coral-reefs-represent-some-of-the-worlds-most-spectacular-beauty/) [Sheherazade Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheherazade-goldsmith/) Browse all 3,310 Foundation quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Bad reasoning as well as good reasoning is possible; and this fact is the foundation of the practical side of logic.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles Sanders Peirce" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning-is-possible-and-this-fact-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Foundation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning-is-possible-and-this-fact-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/charles-sanders-peirce-5105_foundation_bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning_576498.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/charles-sanders-peirce-5105_foundation_bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning_576498.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/charles-sanders-peirce-5105_foundation_bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning_576498.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Bad reasoning as well as good reasoning is possible; and this fact is the foundation of the practical side…” — Charles Sanders Peirce", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Charles Sanders Peirce", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Bad reasoning as well as good...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning-is-possible-and-this-fact-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/bad-reasoning-as-well-as-good-reasoning-is-possible-and-this-fact-is/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```