What's the difference between reason and sophism?

Reason


Definition:

  • (n.) A thought or a consideration offered in support of a determination or an opinion; a just ground for a conclusion or an action; that which is offered or accepted as an explanation; the efficient cause of an occurrence or a phenomenon; a motive for an action or a determination; proof, more or less decisive, for an opinion or a conclusion; principle; efficient cause; final cause; ground of argument.
  • (n.) The faculty or capacity of the human mind by which it is distinguished from the intelligence of the inferior animals; the higher as distinguished from the lower cognitive faculties, sense, imagination, and memory, and in contrast to the feelings and desires. Reason comprises conception, judgment, reasoning, and the intuitional faculty. Specifically, it is the intuitional faculty, or the faculty of first truths, as distinguished from the understanding, which is called the discursive or ratiocinative faculty.
  • (n.) Due exercise of the reasoning faculty; accordance with, or that which is accordant with and ratified by, the mind rightly exercised; right intellectual judgment; clear and fair deductions from true principles; that which is dictated or supported by the common sense of mankind; right conduct; right; propriety; justice.
  • (n.) Ratio; proportion.
  • (n.) To exercise the rational faculty; to deduce inferences from premises; to perform the process of deduction or of induction; to ratiocinate; to reach conclusions by a systematic comparison of facts.
  • (n.) Hence: To carry on a process of deduction or of induction, in order to convince or to confute; to formulate and set forth propositions and the inferences from them; to argue.
  • (n.) To converse; to compare opinions.
  • (v. t.) To arrange and present the reasons for or against; to examine or discuss by arguments; to debate or discuss; as, I reasoned the matter with my friend.
  • (v. t.) To support with reasons, as a request.
  • (v. t.) To persuade by reasoning or argument; as, to reason one into a belief; to reason one out of his plan.
  • (v. t.) To overcome or conquer by adducing reasons; -- with down; as, to reason down a passion.
  • (v. t.) To find by logical processes; to explain or justify by reason or argument; -- usually with out; as, to reason out the causes of the librations of the moon.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) For this reason, these observations should not be disregarded.
  • (2) Not only do they give employers no reason to turn them into proper jobs, but mini-jobs offer workers little incentive to work more because then they would have to pay tax.
  • (3) The results of our microscopic model confirm that the continuum hypothesis used in our previous macroscopic model is reasonable.
  • (4) The use of glucagon in double-contrast studies of the colon has been recommended for various reasons, one of which is to facilitate reflux of barium into the terminal ileum.
  • (5) The reason for the rise in Android's market share on both sides of the Atlantic is the increased number of devices that use the software.
  • (6) Reasonably good agreement is seen between theoretical apparent rate-vesicle concentration relationships and those measured experimentally.
  • (7) Splenectomy had been performed for traumatic, hematologic or immunologic reasons.
  • (8) The most common reasons cited for relapse included craving, social situations, stress, and nervousness.
  • (9) "We do not yet live in a society where the police or any other officers of the law are entitled to detain people without reasonable justification and demand their papers," Gardiner wrote.
  • (10) Even if it were not the case that police use a variety of tricks to keep recorded crime figures low, this data would still represent an almost meaningless measure of the extent of crime in society, for the simple reason that a huge proportion of crimes (of almost all sorts) have always gone unreported.
  • (11) The mechanism by which gp55 causes increased erythroblastosis and ultimately leukaemia is unknown, but a reasonable suggestion is that gp55 can mimic the action of erythropoietin by binding to its receptor (Epo-R), thereby triggering prolonged proliferation of erythroid cells.
  • (12) Both Types I and II collagen are important constituents of the affected tissues, and thus defective collagens are reasonable candidates for the primary abnormality in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS).
  • (13) Reasons for non-acceptance do not indicate any major difficulties in the employment of such staff in general practice, at least as far as the patients are concerned.
  • (14) For that reason we determine basal serum pepsinogen I (PG I) levels in 25 ulcerous patients and 75% of their offspring and to a control group matched by age and sex.
  • (15) October 23, 2013 3.55pm BST Another reason to be concerned about the global economy - Canada's central bank has slashed its economic forecasts for the US.
  • (16) A series of 241 patients with subphrenic abscess was analysed to seek reasons for the continuing mortality.
  • (17) Still, cynics might say they can identify at least one reason it all might fail: namely form.
  • (18) Child age was negatively correlated with mother's use of commands, reasoning, threats, and bribes, and positively correlated with maternal nondirectives, servings, and child compliance.
  • (19) The reason I liked them was because they were a band, and my dad had a band.
  • (20) "Speed is not the main reason for building the new railway.

Sophism


Definition:

  • (n.) The doctrine or mode of reasoning practiced by a sophist; hence, any fallacy designed to deceive.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) It blamed "confrontation maniacs" for "[making their] servants of conservative media let loose a whole string of sophism intended to hatch all sorts of dastardly wicked plots and float misinformation".