EXTREMES, in Logic, denote two terms of a syllogism, the predicate and subject. They are called extremes, from their relation to another term, which is a medium or mean between them. The predicate, as being likewise contained in the first proposition, is called the major extremum or greater extreme; and the subject, as being put in the second or minor proposition, is called the minor extremum or lesser extreme. Thus, in the syllogism, "Man is an animal; Peter is a man; therefore Peter is an animal;" the word animal is the greater extreme, Peter the less extreme, and man the medium.
EXTREMES
article · 588 chars · lineage ↗ · page image at NLS ↗