Argument from definition

You decide whether a label applies to something by spelling out what the label means and checking the case against it. The argument works because a definition sets the conditions for using a word: if the case meets them it gets the name, and if it does not the name is withheld. It can be attacked by disputing the definition offered — this is not what the word means, or not all that it means.

Example

Unauthorized downloading is not theft because unauthorized downloading does not deprive the original owner of the use of an object

Standardised form

Unauthorized downloading (a) is not theft (X) because unauthorized downloading (a) does not deprive the original owner of the use of an object (Y).

Transformations applied: none — the example is already in canonical form.

Classification

The subject is the same in both statements and the predicates differ, so the argument form is alpha (a is X because a is Y).

The conclusion “is not theft” is a statement of value (V) and the premise “does not deprive the original owner of the use of an object” is a statement of fact (F), so the argument substance is VF.

The keyword DEFINITION describes the relationship between predicates Y and X. The argument lever can thus be formulated as “Depriving the original owner of the use of an object (Y) is the DEFINITION of theft (X)”.

Not to be confused with

• Argument from criterion — The premise supplies a standard for a judgement of quality, not the meaning of the term in the conclusion. CRITERION
• Argument from subsumption — The premise names a particular case that falls under the term instead of spelling the term out. SUBSUMPTION
• Argument from disqualifier — Substance, not lever: the premise is itself evaluative, and it qualifies the label rather than withholding it. VV

Source

Comment on an article published on techdirt.com, 05.04.2010.

Other examples

• “The author of this blog post (a) committed plagiarism (X) because the author of this blog post (a) presented another person’s work as their own (Y).” — source not yet recorded.