In contrast to naive set theory, the attitude adopted in an axiomatic development of set theory is that it is not necessary to know what the “things” are that are called “sets” or what the relation of membership means. Of sole concern are the properties assumed about sets and the membership relation. Thus, in an axiomatic theory of sets, set and the membership relation ∊ are undefined terms. The assumptions adopted about these notions are called the axioms of the theory. Axiomatic set theorems are the axioms together with statements that can be deduced from the axioms using the rules of inference provided by a system of logic. Criteria for the choice of axioms include: (1) consistency—it should be impossible to derive as theorems both a statement and its negation; (2) plausibility—axioms should be in accord with intuitive beliefs about sets; and (3) richness—desirable results of Cantorian set theory can be derived as theorems.
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