Abstract

The principle of contradiction, or non-contradiction, is traditionally included as one of the three fundamental principles of logic, together with the principle of identity and the principle of excluded middle. There is a consensus now regarding the shape of the principle of contradiction in modern formal logic. However, a deeper look at the history of its formulation reveals a much more complicated picture. We trace some of such developments from the beginning of the twentieth century when all sorts of formalisms were proposed, and even the name itself was up for debate. Our focal point is the proposals made by Christine Ladd-Franklin, which we describe against the background of other attempts at the time.