Russell's Arguments Against Frege's Sense-Reference Distinction
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Peter Thomas Geach, 1916–2013
PETER GEACH Peter Thomas Geach 1916–2013 PETER GEACH was born on 29 March 1916 at 41, Royal Avenue, Chelsea. He was the son of George Hender Geach, a Cambridge graduate working in the Indian Educational Service (IES), who later taught philosophy at Lahore. George Geach was married to Eleonore Sgnonina, the daughter of a Polish civil engineer who had emigrated to England. The marriage was not a happy one: after a brief period in India Eleonore returned to England to give birth and never returned to her husband. Peter Geach’s first few years were spent in the house of his Polish grandparents in Cardiff, but at the age of four his father had him made the ward of a former nanny of his own, an elderly nonconformist lady named Miss Tarr. When Peter’s mother tried to visit him, Miss Tarr warned him that a dangerous mad woman was coming, so that he cowered away from her when she tried to embrace him. As she departed she threw a brick through a window, and from that point there was no further contact between mother and son. When he was eight years old he became a boarder at Llandaff Cathedral School. Soon afterwards his father was invalided out of the IES and took charge of his education. To the surprise of his Llandaff housemaster, Peter won a scholarship to Clifton College, Bristol. Geach père had learnt moral sciences at Trinity College Cambridge from Bertrand Russell and G. E. Moore, and he inducted his son into the delights of philosophy from an early age. -
Reference and Sense
REFERENCE AND SENSE y two distinct ways of talking about the meaning of words y tlkitalking of SENSE=deali ng with relationshippggs inside language y talking of REFERENCE=dealing with reltilations hips bbtetween l. and the world y by means of reference a speaker indicates which things (including persons) are being talked about ege.g. My son is in the beech tree. II identifies persons identifies things y REFERENCE-relationship between the Enggplish expression ‘this p pgage’ and the thing you can hold between your finger and thumb (part of the world) y your left ear is the REFERENT of the phrase ‘your left ear’ while REFERENCE is the relationship between parts of a l. and things outside the l. y The same expression can be used to refer to different things- there are as many potential referents for the phrase ‘your left ear’ as there are pppeople in the world with left ears Many expressions can have VARIABLE REFERENCE y There are cases of expressions which in normal everyday conversation never refer to different things, i.e. which in most everyday situations that one can envisage have CONSTANT REFERENCE. y However, there is very little constancy of reference in l. Almost all of the fixing of reference comes from the context in which expressions are used. y Two different expressions can have the same referent class ica l example: ‘the MiMorning St’Star’ and ‘the Evening Star’ to refer to the planet Venus y SENSE of an expression is its place in a system of semantic relati onshi ps wit h other expressions in the l. -
Two-Dimensionalism: Semantics and Metasemantics
Two-Dimensionalism: Semantics and Metasemantics YEUNG, \y,ang -C-hun ...:' . '",~ ... ~ .. A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Philosophy In Philosophy The Chinese University of Hong Kong January 2010 Abstract of thesis entitled: Two-Dimensionalism: Semantics and Metasemantics Submitted by YEUNG, Wang Chun for the degree of Master of Philosophy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong in July 2009 This ,thesis investigates problems surrounding the lively debate about how Kripke's examples of necessary a posteriori truths and contingent a priori truths should be explained. Two-dimensionalism is a recent development that offers a non-reductive analysis of such truths. The semantic interpretation of two-dimensionalism, proposed by Jackson and Chalmers, has certain 'descriptive' elements, which can be articulated in terms of the following three claims: (a) names and natural kind terms are reference-fixed by some associated properties, (b) these properties are known a priori by every competent speaker, and (c) these properties reflect the cognitive significance of sentences containing such terms. In this thesis, I argue against two arguments directed at such 'descriptive' elements, namely, The Argument from Ignorance and Error ('AlE'), and The Argument from Variability ('AV'). I thereby suggest that reference-fixing properties belong to the semantics of names and natural kind terms, and not to their metasemantics. Chapter 1 is a survey of some central notions related to the debate between descriptivism and direct reference theory, e.g. sense, reference, and rigidity. Chapter 2 outlines the two-dimensional approach and introduces the va~ieties of interpretations 11 of the two-dimensional framework. -
The End of Wittgenstein's Tractatus Logico
Living in Silence: the End of Wittgenstein’s Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus and Lecture on Ethics Johanna Schakenraad Ludwig Wittgenstein’s Tractatus logico-philosophicus starts as a book on logic and (the limits of) language. In the first years after publication (in 1921) it was primarily read as a work aiming to put an end to nonsensical language and all kinds of metaphysical speculation. For this reason it had a great influence on the logical positivists of the Vienna Circle. But for Wittgenstein himself it had another and more important purpose. In 1919 he had sent his manuscript to Ludwig von Ficker, the publisher of the literary journal der Brenner, hoping that Ficker would consider publishing the Tractatus. In the accompanying letter he explains how he wishes his book to be understood. He thinks it is necessary to give an explanation of his book because the content might seem strange to Ficker, but, he writes: In reality, it isn’t strange to you, for the point of the book is ethical. I once wanted to give a few words in the foreword which now actually are not in it, which, however, I’ll write to you now because they might be a key to you: I wanted to write that my work consists of two parts: of the one which is here, and of everything which I have not written. And precisely this second part is the important one. For the Ethical is delimited from within, as it were, by my book; and I’m convinced that, strictly speaking, it can ONLY be delimited in this way. -
PETER Geach's Views of Relative Identity, Together With
SOME RADICAL CONSEQUENCES OF GEACH'S LOGICAL THEORIES By jAMES CAIN ETER Geach's views of relative identity, together with his Paccount of proper names and quantifiers, 1 while presenting what I believe is an inwardly coherent and consistent account, presents us with radical consequences regarding what arguments are to be accepted as valid. For example, consider the argument: ( 1) All men are mortal Fido is a man Thus, Fido is mortal in which 'Fido' names a dog. While this would normally be thought to be a valid argument with a false premise, we shall see that on Geach's theories it turns out to be invalid. In fact for every form of general categorical syllogism we can produce an argument of that form which on Geach's theories turns out invalid. 1 I will only be concerned with the theory of restricted quantifiers worked out in the main body of Reference and Generality, third edition {Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1980), not with either his theory of unrestricted quantifiers or the method of interpreting restricted quantifiers mentioned in the appendix to Reference and Generality. 84 ANALYSIS Let us see how this situation arises. We first look briefly at Geach's semantics. According to Geach every proper name is associ ated with a criterion of identity which could be expressed using a substantival term; e.g., 'Fido' is, let's say, associated with the criterion of identity given by 'same dog': this can be expressed by saying that 'Fido' is a name for a dog (we may go on to say that it is a name of a dog if it is non-empty; Reference and Generality p. -
1 Reference 1. the Phenomenon Of
1 Reference 1. The phenomenon of reference In a paper evaluating animal communication systems, Hockett and Altmann (1968) presented a list of what they found to be the distinctive characteristics which, collectively, define what it is to be a human language. Among the characteristics is the phenomenon of "aboutness", that is, in using a human language we talk about things that are external to ourselves. This not only includes things that we find in our immediate environment, but also things that are displaced in time and space. For example, at this moment I can just as easily talk about Tahiti or the planet Pluto, neither of which are in my immediate environment nor ever have been, as I can about this telephone before me or the computer I am using at this moment. Temporal displacement is similar: it would seem I can as easily talk about Abraham Lincoln or Julius Caesar, neither a contemporary of mine, as I can of former president Bill Clinton, or my good friend John, who are contemporaries of mine. This notion of aboutness is, intuitively, lacking in some contrasting instances. For example, it is easy to think that animal communication systems lack this characteristic—that the mating call of the male cardinal may be caused by a certain biological urge, and may serve as a signal that attracts mates, but the call itself is (putatively) not about either of those things. Or, consider an example from human behavior. I hit my thumb with a hammer while attempting to drive in a nail. I say, "Ouch!" In so doing I am saying this because of the pain, and I am communicating to anyone within earshot that I am in pain, but the word ouch itself is not about the pain I feel. -
Educational Rights and the Roles of Virtues, Perfectionism, and Cultural Progress
The Law of Education: Educational Rights and the Roles of Virtues, Perfectionism, and Cultural Progress R. GEORGE WRIGHT* I. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 385 II. EDUCATION: PURPOSES, RECENT OUTCOMES, AND LEGAL MECHANISMS FOR REFORM ................................................................ 391 A. EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES AND RIGHTS LANGUAGE ...................... 391 B. SOME RECENT GROUNDS FOR CONCERN IN FULFILLING EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ............................................................. 393 C. THE BROAD RANGE OF AVAILABLE TECHNIQUES FOR THE LEGAL REFORM OF EDUCATION ............................................................... 395 III. SOME LINKAGES BETWEEN EDUCATION AND THE BASIC VIRTUES, PERFECTIONISM, AND CULTURAL PROGRESS ..................................... 397 IV. VIRTUES AND THEIR LEGITIMATE PROMOTION THROUGH THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM ...................................................................... 401 V. PERFECTIONISM AND ITS LEGITIMATE PROMOTION THROUGH THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM ...................................................................... 410 VI. CULTURAL PROGRESS OVER TIME AND ITS LEGITIMATE PROMOTION THROUGH THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM .............................................. 417 VII. CONCLUSION: EDUCATION LAW AS RIGHTS-CENTERED AND AS THE PURSUIT OF WORTHY VALUES AND GOALS: THE EXAMPLE OF HORNE V. FLORES ............................................................................................ 431 I. INTRODUCTION The law of education -
Peter Geach's Ethics
July 1, 2018 Grammar and Function: Peter Geach's Ethics Katharina Nieswandt Pre-print, to appear in: Martin Hähnel (ed.) (forthcoming) Aristotelian Naturalism: A Research Companion. Springer: Dordrecht. A German version of this paper appeared as: Katharina Nieswandt (2017): “Grammatik und Funktion: Peter Geach.” In: Martin Hähnel (ed.): Der Aristotelische Naturalismus: Ein Handbuch. Metzler: Stuttgart,163-174. ISBN: 978-3-476-04332-0 (Hardcover). DOI: 10.1007/978-3-476-04333-7. Table of Contents Introduction.............................................................................................................................................1 Short Biography......................................................................................................................................2 The Grammar of Moral Expressions such as “Good” or “Should”.............................................3 The Frege-Geach Problem....................................................................................................................6 The Supposed “Naturalistic Fallacy”..................................................................................................8 Natural Teleology...................................................................................................................................9 The Role of the Virtues in Moral Life..............................................................................................10 Annotated Bibliography......................................................................................................................11 -
What Is a Speech Act? 1 2
WHAT IS A SPEECH ACT? 1 2 What is a Speech Act? John Searle I. Introduction n a typical speech situation involving a speaker, a hearer, and an utterance by the speaker, there are many kinds of acts associated with Ithe speaker’s utterance. The speaker will characteristically have moved his jaw and tongue and made noises. In addition, he will characteristically have performed some acts within the class which includes informing or irritating or boring his hearers; he will further characteristically have performed acts within the class which includes referring to Kennedy or Khrushchev or the North Pole; and he will also have performed acts within the class which includes making statements, asking questions, issuing commands, giving reports, greeting, and warning. The members of this last class are what Austin1 called illocutionary acts and it is with this class that I shall be concerned in this paper, so the paper might have been called ‘What is an Illocutionary Act?’ I do not attempt to defi ne the expression ‘illocutionary act’, although if my analysis of a particular illocutionary act succeeds it may provide the basis for a defi nition. Some of the English verbs and verb phrases associated with illocutionary acts are: state, assert, describe, warn, remark, comment, command, order, request, criticize, apologize, censure, approve, welcome, promise, express approval, and express regret. Austin claimed that there were over a thousand such expressions in English. By way of introduction, perhaps I can say why I think it is of interest and importance in the philosophy of language to study speech acts, or, as they are sometimes called, language acts or linguistic acts. -
Frege and the Logic of Sense and Reference
FREGE AND THE LOGIC OF SENSE AND REFERENCE Kevin C. Klement Routledge New York & London Published in 2002 by Routledge 29 West 35th Street New York, NY 10001 Published in Great Britain by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane London EC4P 4EE Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper. Copyright © 2002 by Kevin C. Klement All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any infomration storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Klement, Kevin C., 1974– Frege and the logic of sense and reference / by Kevin Klement. p. cm — (Studies in philosophy) Includes bibliographical references and index ISBN 0-415-93790-6 1. Frege, Gottlob, 1848–1925. 2. Sense (Philosophy) 3. Reference (Philosophy) I. Title II. Studies in philosophy (New York, N. Y.) B3245.F24 K54 2001 12'.68'092—dc21 2001048169 Contents Page Preface ix Abbreviations xiii 1. The Need for a Logical Calculus for the Theory of Sinn and Bedeutung 3 Introduction 3 Frege’s Project: Logicism and the Notion of Begriffsschrift 4 The Theory of Sinn and Bedeutung 8 The Limitations of the Begriffsschrift 14 Filling the Gap 21 2. The Logic of the Grundgesetze 25 Logical Language and the Content of Logic 25 Functionality and Predication 28 Quantifiers and Gothic Letters 32 Roman Letters: An Alternative Notation for Generality 38 Value-Ranges and Extensions of Concepts 42 The Syntactic Rules of the Begriffsschrift 44 The Axiomatization of Frege’s System 49 Responses to the Paradox 56 v vi Contents 3. -
Ambiguous Persuasion∗
Ambiguous Persuasion∗ Dorian Beauchêney Jian Liz Ming Li§ May 7, 2018 Abstract We study a persuasion game à la Kamenica and Gentzkow (2011) where players are ambiguity averse with maxmin expected utility (Gilboa and Schmeidler, 1989). With no prior ambiguity, a Sender may choose to use ambiguous communication devices. Our main result characterizes the value of optimal ambiguous persuasion, which is of- ten higher than what is feasible under Bayesian persuasion. We characterize posteriors that are potentially plausible when they are generated by ambiguous devices. One way to construct an optimal ambiguous communication device is by using synonyms, messages that lead to the same posteriors, in which Sender can hedge himself against ambiguity while inducing actions from Receiver that would not be possible under stan- dard Bayesian persuasion. We also show that the use of synonyms are a necessary property of optimal and beneficial ambiguous persuasion. We consider two applica- tions, including the well-known uniform-quadratic example. Our analysis provides a justification for how ambiguity may emerge endogenously in persuasion. ∗We are grateful to Pierre Fleckinger, Françoise Forges, Sidartha Gordon, Yingni Guo, Sean Horan, Rafael Hortala-Vallve, Maxim Ivanov, Frédéric Koessler, Marie Laclau, Laura Lasio, Elliot Lipnowski, Sujoy Mukerji, Peter Norman, Eduardo Perez-Richet, Ludovic Renou, Marciano Siniscalchi, Joel Sobel, Jean-Marc Tallon, Vassili Vergopoulos, and two anonymous referees for their very helpful comments. We also thank audiences at Stony Brook Game Theory Conference 2016, Midwest Theory conference 2016, 2017, Midwest Political Science Association Conference 2017, Canadian Economic Theory Conference 2017, Asian Summer Meeting of Econometric Society 2017, RES-York Symposium on Game Theory 2017, Carleton University, McMaster University, McGill University, National University of Singapore, Université de Montreal, and Université Laval for valuable inputs. -
[Sample Title Page Format]
To Want Nothing: A Badiouian Reading of Radical Orthodoxy By David John DeCoste A Thesis Submitted to Atlantic School of Theology, Halifax, Nova Scotia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Theology and Religious Studies. March 2013, Halifax, Nova Scotia Copyright David John DeCoste, 2013. Approved: Dr. David Deane Supervisor Dr. Susan Slater Examiner Dr. Neil Robertson Examiner Date: April 3, 2013 2 Abstract To Want Nothing: A Badiouian Reading of Radical Orthodoxy by David John DeCoste April 3, 2013 This thesis argues that Alain Badiou presents a challenge to Radically Orthodox thinkers by claiming that theological discourse on being can only articulate a description of a structured presentation of an inconsistent multiplicity; a situation referred to throughout the thesis as “a Badiouian thinking of the One.” The argument begins by explaining how in the contemporary context Badiou identifies two forms of thinking the One: positivism and theology. It follows that if positivism and theology are two forms of the same thinking then there must be common elements or logics at work in their separate discourses. Three elements shared by both discourses are shown to be at work in both a positivist project—Daniel Dennett’s philosophy of consciousness—and a theological project—Radical Orthodoxy. Ultimately, in establishing how the three elements are common to both discourses Radical Orthodoxy is identified as an example of a Badiouian thinking of the One. 3 Contents Introduction: 0 ................................................................................................................................. 4 1.0 Thinking the One: A Positivist Example............................................................................... 8 1.01 Evolutionary progression ............................................................................................... 33 1.02 Positing an abstraction: Dennett’s Universal Acid .......................................................