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An '''explanation''' is a set of [[statements]] constructed to describe a set of [[facts]] which clarifies the [[causes]], [[context]], and consequences of those facts.
This description may establish rules or [[laws]], and may clarify the existing ones in [[relation]] to any objects, or [[phenomena]] examined. The components of an explanation can be implicit, and be interwoven with one another.
An explanation is often underpinned by an [[understanding]] that is [[represented]] by different [[media]] such as [[music]], [[text]], and graphics. Thus, an explanation is subjected to [[interpretation]], and [[discussion]].
In [[scientific]] [[research]], explanation is one of the [[purposes]] of [[research]], e.g., exploration and description. Explanation is a way to uncover new [[knowledge]], and to report [[relationships]] among different aspects of [[studied]] [[phenomena]].
==Explanations and arguments==
While [[arguments]] attempt to show that something is, will be, or should be the case, '''explanations''' try to show why or how something is or will be. If Fred and Joe address the issue of whether or not Fred's cat has fleas, Joe may state: "Fred, your cat has fleas. [[Observe]] the cat is scratching right now." Joe has made an [[argument]] that the cat has fleas. However, if Fred and Joe agree on the [[fact]] that the cat has fleas, they may further question why this is so and put forth an explanation: "The [[reason]] the cat has fleas is that the weather has been damp." The [[difference]] is that the attempt is not to settle whether or not some claim is true, it is to show why it is true.
In this sense, [[arguments]] aim to [[contribute]] knowledge, whereas explanations aim to [[contribute]] [[understanding]].
[[Arguments]] and explanations largely resemble each other in [[rhetorical]] use. This is the cause of much [[difficulty]] in [[thinking]] critically about claims. There are several reasons for this difficulty.
*People often are not not themselves clear on whether they are [[arguing]] for or explaining something.
*The same [[types]] of [[words]] and phrases are used in presenting explanations and arguments.
*The terms 'explain' or 'explanation,' et cetera are frequently used in [[arguments]].
*Explanations are often used within arguments and presented so as to serve as arguments.
==Explanations and justification==
Justification is the [[reason]] why someone properly holds a [[belief]], the explanation as to why the belief is a true one, or an account of how one knows what one knows. In much the same way [[arguments]] and explanations may be [[confused]] with each other, so too may explanations and justifications. [[Statements]] which are justifications of some [[action]] take the form of arguments. For example attempts to justify a theft usually explain the motives (e.g., to feed a starving [[family]]).
It is important to be [[aware]] when an explanation is not a justification. A criminal profiler may offer an explanation of a suspect's [[behavior]] (e.g.; the [[person]] lost their job, the person got evicted, etc.). Such statements may help us [[understand]] why the person committed the [[crime]], however an uncritical [[listener]] may believe the speaker is trying to gain [[sympathy]] for the person and his or her actions. It does not follow that a person proposing an explanation has any sympathy for the [[views]] or [[actions]] being explained. This is an important distinction because we need to be able to understand and explain terrible [[events]] and [[behavior]] in attempting to discourage it.
==External links==
*[http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/scientific-explanation/ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on Scientific Explanation]
*[http://www.free-dictionary-translation.com/Explanation.html Explanation] in several languages and meanings
[[Category: Philosophy]]
[[Category: Languages and Literature]]
An '''explanation''' is a set of [[statements]] constructed to describe a set of [[facts]] which clarifies the [[causes]], [[context]], and consequences of those facts.
This description may establish rules or [[laws]], and may clarify the existing ones in [[relation]] to any objects, or [[phenomena]] examined. The components of an explanation can be implicit, and be interwoven with one another.
An explanation is often underpinned by an [[understanding]] that is [[represented]] by different [[media]] such as [[music]], [[text]], and graphics. Thus, an explanation is subjected to [[interpretation]], and [[discussion]].
In [[scientific]] [[research]], explanation is one of the [[purposes]] of [[research]], e.g., exploration and description. Explanation is a way to uncover new [[knowledge]], and to report [[relationships]] among different aspects of [[studied]] [[phenomena]].
==Explanations and arguments==
While [[arguments]] attempt to show that something is, will be, or should be the case, '''explanations''' try to show why or how something is or will be. If Fred and Joe address the issue of whether or not Fred's cat has fleas, Joe may state: "Fred, your cat has fleas. [[Observe]] the cat is scratching right now." Joe has made an [[argument]] that the cat has fleas. However, if Fred and Joe agree on the [[fact]] that the cat has fleas, they may further question why this is so and put forth an explanation: "The [[reason]] the cat has fleas is that the weather has been damp." The [[difference]] is that the attempt is not to settle whether or not some claim is true, it is to show why it is true.
In this sense, [[arguments]] aim to [[contribute]] knowledge, whereas explanations aim to [[contribute]] [[understanding]].
[[Arguments]] and explanations largely resemble each other in [[rhetorical]] use. This is the cause of much [[difficulty]] in [[thinking]] critically about claims. There are several reasons for this difficulty.
*People often are not not themselves clear on whether they are [[arguing]] for or explaining something.
*The same [[types]] of [[words]] and phrases are used in presenting explanations and arguments.
*The terms 'explain' or 'explanation,' et cetera are frequently used in [[arguments]].
*Explanations are often used within arguments and presented so as to serve as arguments.
==Explanations and justification==
Justification is the [[reason]] why someone properly holds a [[belief]], the explanation as to why the belief is a true one, or an account of how one knows what one knows. In much the same way [[arguments]] and explanations may be [[confused]] with each other, so too may explanations and justifications. [[Statements]] which are justifications of some [[action]] take the form of arguments. For example attempts to justify a theft usually explain the motives (e.g., to feed a starving [[family]]).
It is important to be [[aware]] when an explanation is not a justification. A criminal profiler may offer an explanation of a suspect's [[behavior]] (e.g.; the [[person]] lost their job, the person got evicted, etc.). Such statements may help us [[understand]] why the person committed the [[crime]], however an uncritical [[listener]] may believe the speaker is trying to gain [[sympathy]] for the person and his or her actions. It does not follow that a person proposing an explanation has any sympathy for the [[views]] or [[actions]] being explained. This is an important distinction because we need to be able to understand and explain terrible [[events]] and [[behavior]] in attempting to discourage it.
==External links==
*[http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/scientific-explanation/ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on Scientific Explanation]
*[http://www.free-dictionary-translation.com/Explanation.html Explanation] in several languages and meanings
[[Category: Philosophy]]
[[Category: Languages and Literature]]
