Episode 13: Principles.

Consider the principle like a moral in an Aesop’s Fable. For example, in the fable “The Tortoise and the Hare,” the lesson learned by the animals—the moral of the story—is that “Slow and steady wins the race.” That moral is the principle! Let’s not confuse it with the conclusion of the fable, which was simply that the tortoise won the race.

To get more technical, a principle is like a law, and laws have elements. In other words, to support a conviction of first degree murder, the prosecution must establish that the individual acted 1) intentionally, 2) with malice, that his act was 3) premeditated, and that it 4) cause the killing of another. If the prosecution can’t prove all of those elements apply to the case against a person, then the principle would not justify the application of a murder conviction in this case. For example, if a woman is charged with killing her husband, but his body isn’t ever found, is that 4th element above actually proven? Or, if a man asks his wife to shoot him while he holds a book in front of his heart so that he can test the theory that a book can stop a bullet, is there evidence that she did so with malice?

So, as we look at principles, we’ll be looking at all of the components of the principle and checking one component at a time to see if it applies to a particular scenario, or can be used to justify a conclusion, or can apply to a similar principle with a different fact pattern.

Three Types of Principle Questions

Select the Principle from the Answer Choices

● Which one of the following principles, if valid, helps to justify the author’s reasoning?

● Which one of the following principles most helps to justify the conclusion above?

● Which one of the following principles underlies the author’s argument?

Select the Justification from the Answer Choices

● Which of the following, if true, most justifies the above application of the principle?

Apply the Principle to Another Situation

● The principles stated by the author