Logic in Nyanja

In this study, formal and informal principles of logic are applied to selected texts in Nyanja, an African language spoken primarily in Eastern Zambia. The investigation is corpus-based and considers five text types or genres of discourse: everyday conversations, novels, oral narratives, plays, and proverbs. In total, 545 syllogisms are constructed and categorised according to syllogism type. The findings for each genre and for all genres as a collective corpus are discussed in this book. One of the major conclusions of the study is that humans use an abbreviated system of logic in actual practice. No syllogism is found to be used in its entirety, from premises to conclusion. The study also finds that 80% of free communication or conversation is in the form of conclusions, which are the end products of the syllogism process. As an important result of the study, a new theory for literary criticism named Character Assembling is developed. This book is also designed as a useful introduction to logic for students pursuing studies in logic. In addition, the study of logic can be of great help in sharpening one’s tools of reasoning.