Philosophy of language /

In this book one of the world's foremost philosophers of language presents his unifying vision of the field--its principal achievements, its most pressing current questions, and its most promising future directions. In addition to explaining the progress philosophers have made toward creating a...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Soames, Scott
Corporate Authors: De Gruyter.
Published: Princeton University Press,
Publisher Address: Princeton, N.J. :
Publication Dates: [2010]
©2010
Literature type: eBook
Language: English
Edition: Course Book.
Series: Princeton foundations of contemporary philosophy
Subjects:
Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/9781400833931
http://www.degruyter.com/doc/cover/9781400833931.jpg
Summary: In this book one of the world's foremost philosophers of language presents his unifying vision of the field--its principal achievements, its most pressing current questions, and its most promising future directions. In addition to explaining the progress philosophers have made toward creating a theoretical framework for the study of language, Scott Soames investigates foundational concepts--such as truth, reference, and meaning--that are central to the philosophy of language and important to philosophy as a whole. The first part of the book describes how philosophers from Frege, Russell, Tarski, and Carnap to Kripke, Kaplan, and Montague developed precise techniques for understanding the languages of logic and mathematics, and how these techniques have been refined and extended to the study of natural human languages. The book then builds on this account, exploring new thinking about propositions, possibility, and the relationship between meaning, assertion, and other aspects of language use. An invaluable overview of the philosophy of language by one of its most important practitioners, this book will be essential reading for all serious students of philosophy.
Carrier Form: 1 online resource (200 pages) : illustrations.
ISBN: 9781400833931
Index Number: P107
CLC: H0-05
Contents: Frontmatter --
Contents --
Acknowledgments --
Introduction --
CHAPTER ONE The Logical Study of Language --
CHAPTER TWO: Truth, Interpretation, and Meaning --
CHAPTER THREE: Meaning, Modality, and Possible Worlds Semantics --
CHAPTER FOUR: Rigid Designation, Direct Reference, and Indexicality --
CHAPTER FIVE: The Metaphysics of Meaning: Propositions and Possible Worlds --
CHAPTER SIX: Apriority, Aposteriority, and Actuality --
CHAPTER SEVEN: The Limits of Meaning --
References --
Index.