Mackie, Martin, and INUS in the Morning: Explaining Mackie’s INUS Conditions through the Humor of Demetri Martin

Gimbel, Steven

doi:10.5840/inquiryct202312115

Inquiry: Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines

Volume 33, Issue 2, Fall 2024

Steven Gimbel

Pages 155-159

https://doi.org/10.5840/inquiryct202312115

Mackie, Martin, and INUS in the Morning
Explaining Mackie’s INUS Conditions through the Humor of Demetri Martin

Distinguishing necessary and sufficient conditions can be challenging to undergraduate logic and critical thinking students. Explaining J.?L. Mackie’s notion of INUS conditions—insufficient but necessary parts of unnecessary but sufficient conditions—is an even more difficult concept to understand. It is helpful to have memorable examples that not only clarify the concept, but make it easy to remember. Law student turned stand-up comedian Demetri Martin uses necessary, sufficient, and INUS conditions to construct absurdist jokes. These jokes provide effective tools for making Mackie’s notion understandable and memorable.

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