If the major premise is particular, the individual or group classified under the middle by the minor premise need not belong to the “some” instances mentioned by the major.
Example: All students are humans. Some humans are poets. Neither “All students are poets” nor “Some students are poets” follows. The poets may be entirely different humans.
A universal major makes a judgment about every middle-term instance, allowing it to transfer to those included under the middle by the minor premise.
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The First Figure: Conditions of Validity and Four Productive Moods
If the major premise is particular, the individual or group classified under the middle by the minor premise need not belong to the “some” instances mentioned by the major.
Example: All students are humans. Some humans are poets. Neither “All students are poets” nor “Some students are poets” follows. The poets may be entirely different humans.
A universal major makes a judgment about every middle-term instance, allowing it to transfer to those included under the middle by the minor premise.