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.. _declarative_declarative:

Declarative object-oriented programming
=======================================

Logtalk is a *declarative object-oriented logic programming language*. This means
that Logtalk shares key concepts with other object-oriented programming languages
but abstracts and reinterprets these concepts in the context of declarative logic
programming.

The key concepts in *declarative* object-oriented programming are *encapsulation*
and *reuse patterns*. Notably, the concept of *mutable state*, which is an *imperative*
concept, is not a significant concept in *declarative* object-oriented programming.
Declarative object-oriented programming concepts can be materialized in both
logic and functional languages. In this section, we focus only on declarative
object-oriented logic programming.

The first key generalization of object-oriented programming concepts is the
concept of *object* itself. What an object encapsulates depends on the *base programming
paradigm* where we apply object-oriented programming concepts. When these concepts
are applied to an imperative language, where mutable state and destructive assignment
are central, objects naturally encapsulate and abstract mutable state, providing
disciplined access and modification. When these concepts are applied to a declarative
logic language such as Prolog, objects naturally encapsulate predicates. Therefore, an
object can be seen as a *theory*, expressed by a set of related predicates. Theories
are usually static, and thus Logtalk objects are static by default. This contrasts with
imperative object-oriented languages where usually classes are static and objects are
dynamic. This view of an object as a set of predicates also forgoes a distinction
between *data* and *procedures* that is central to imperative object-oriented
languages but moot in declarative, :term:`homoiconic` logic languages.

The second key generalization concerns the relation between objects and other
entities such as protocols (interfaces) and ancestor objects. The idea is that entity
relations define *reuse patterns* and the *roles* played by the participating entities.
A common reuse pattern is *inheritance*. In this case, an entity inherits, and thus
reuses, resources from an ancestor entity. In a reuse pattern, each participating entity
plays a specific *role*. The same entity, however, can play multiple roles
depending on its relations with other entities. For example, an object can play
the role of a class for its instances, the role of a subclass for its superclasses,
and the role of an instance for its metaclass. Another common reuse pattern is
*protocol implementation*. In this case, an object implementing a protocol reuses
its predicate declarations by providing an implementation for those predicates and
exposing those predicates to its clients. An essential consequence of this
generalization is that protocols, objects, and categories are first-class entities,
while e.g. *prototype*, *parent*, *class*, *instance*, *metaclass*, *subclass*,
*superclass*, or *ancestor* are just *roles* that an object can play. When sending
a message to an object, the corresponding predicate *declaration* and predicate
*definition* lookup procedures (reuse patterns) depend on the role or roles that
the object plays (see the :ref:`inheritance_inheritance` section for details).
Another consequence of this generalization is that a language can provide multiple
reuse patterns instead of selecting a set of patterns and supporting this set as a
design choice that excludes other reuse patterns. For example, most imperative
object-oriented languages are either class-based or prototype-based. In contrast,
Logtalk supports both classes and prototypes by providing the corresponding reuse
patterns using objects as first-class entities capable of playing multiple roles.
