Philosophy of language Books

Book SynopsisThe phenomenon of multimodality is central to our everyday interaction. ''Hybrid'' modes of communication that combine traditional uses of language with imagery, tagging, hashtags and voice-recognition tools have become the norm. Bringing together concepts of meaning and communication across a range of subject areas, including education, media studies, cultural studies, design and architecture, the authors uncover a multimodal grammar that moves away from rigid and language-centered understandings of meaning. They present the first framework for describing and analysing different forms of meaning across text, image, space, body, sound and speech. Succinct summaries of the main thinkers in the fields of language, communications and semiotics are provided alongside rich examples to illustrate the key arguments. A history of media including the genesis of digital media, Unicode, Emoji, XML and HTML, MP3 and more is covered. This book will stimulate new thinking about the nature of meaningTrade Review'… this is a book that could only be written by authors such as Cope and Kalantzis, who have themselves lived through the sheer breadth of the lines of development they bring to readers' attention, making connections and leaps which would in the normal, more circumscribed, business of everyday research rarely occur.' John A. Bateman, Journal of PragmaticsTable of ContentsPart 0. Meaning; Part I. Reference; Part II. Agency; Part III. Structure.

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Book SynopsisAn ancient metaphor likens attention to an archer pulling her bow - the self directing her mind through attention. Yet both the existence of such a self, and the impact of attention on the mind, have been debated for millennia. Advancements in science mean that we now have a better understanding of what attention is and how it works, but philosophers and scientists remain divided as to its impact on the mind. This book takes a strong stance: attention is the key to the self, consciousness, perception, action, and knowledge. While it claims that we cannot perceive novel stimuli without attention, it argues that we can act on and experience the world without attention. It thus provides a new way of thinking about the mind - as something that can either shape itself through attention or engage with the world as it is given, relying on its habits and skills.Trade Review'In this concise, lucid book … Jennings offers a reconciliation between agent-centered freedom and compatibilism. Philosophical psychology is enriched by this valuable exploration.' J. R. Shook, ChoiceTable of Contents1. Introduction; 2. The philosophical landscape on attention; 3. Attention, mental causation, and the self; 4. Attention, perception, and knowledge; 5. Attention, consciousness, and habitual behavior; 6. Attention, action, and responsibility; 7. Conclusion; Appendix A. Mental causation and its problems; Appendix B. The conceptual history of top-down attention; Appendix C. Top-down attention and the brain; Appendix D. Working memory and attention.

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Book SynopsisThe Neuroethics of Memory is a thematically integrated analysis and discussion of neuroethical questions about memory capacity and content, as well as interventions to alter it. These include: how does memory function enable agency, and how does memory dysfunction disable it? To what extent is identity based on our capacity to accurately recall the past? Could a person who becomes aware during surgery be harmed if they have no memory of the experience? How do we weigh the benefits and risks of brain implants designed to enhance, weaken or erase memory? Can a person be responsible for an action if they do not recall it? Would a victim of an assault have an obligation to retain a memory of this act, or the right to erase it? This book uses a framework informed by neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy combined with actual and hypothetical cases to examine these and related questions.Trade Review'Walter Glannon achieves a rare balance: the book is clear and detailed about the neuroscience of memory and is also insightful about the legal and ethical challenges that scientific advances entail. This is a very timely and useful book.' Nick Davis, Manchester Metropolitan University'Memory is central to who we are and how we act. Provoking and thoughtful, The Neuroethics of Memory explores the implications of the new technologies that could alter memory and may fundamentally change who we are.' Andrew Davidson, Medical Director, Melbourne Children's Trials Centre, Australia'The Neuroethics of Memory provides an insightful and well-argued analysis of the implications of memory research for ethical issues that arise in legal and medical arenas. Drawing on literature from neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy, Walter Glannon gracefully illuminates some of the most difficult issues currently facing science and society.' Daniel L. Schacter, William R. Kenan, Jr Professor of Psychology, Harvard University'Walter Glannon has built a fascinating and wide-ranging account of memory. By channeling neurobiology, psychology, law, history, and philosophy, this book summarizes how memory defines who we are and forms the basis of our society. The result is a tour de force of neuroethics at its comprehensive best.' Julian Savulescu, Director of Oxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, University of Oxford'As a synthesis and critical analysis of current work in several disciplines, this book offers an unparalleled vision of how neuroethics scholarship on memory can be interdisciplinary, rigorous, forward-looking, and compelling.' Eric Racine, Neuroethics'For its clear style and its rigorous and sound analytical arguments, The Neuroethics of Memory is a candidate to become an indispensable companion for any research on the ethics of memory and its manipulation.' Andrea Lavazza, Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare EthicsTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Memory systems and memory stages; 2. Agency, identity and dementia; 3. Anesthesia, amnesia and recall; 4. Disorders of memory content and interventions; 5. Disorders of memory capacity and interventions; 6. Legal issues involving memory; Epilogue. The future of memory.

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Book SynopsisAbstract concepts are often embodied through metaphor. For example, we talk about moving through time in metaphorical terms, as if we were moving through space, allowing us to ''look back'' on past events. Much of the work on embodied metaphor to date has assumed a single set of universal, shared bodily experiences that motivate our understanding of abstract concepts. This book explores sources of variation in people''s experiences of embodied metaphor, including, for example, the shape and size of one''s body, one''s age, gender, state of mind, physical or linguistic impairments, personality, ideology, political stance, religious beliefs, and linguistic background. It focuses on the ways in which people''s experiences of metaphor fluctuate over time within a single communicative event or across a lifetime. Combining theoretical argument with findings from new studies, Littlemore analyses sources of variation in embodied metaphor and provides a deeper understanding of the nature of embTrade Review'Lucidly written and well argued, the monograph successfully shows us why this project is worth pursuing.' Shengxi Jin, Journal of PragmaticsTable of Contents1. 'I am trying to climb Everest in flip-flops.' What is embodied metaphor and where does it come from?; 2. 'Would you prefer a pencil or an antiseptic wipe?' What evidence is there for embodied metaphor and why is it important to consider this variation?; 3. 'I'm running on this soapy conveyor belt with people throwing wet sponges at me.' Which metaphors are embodied and when? Variation according to type, function and context; 4. 'This one sounds like a bell and this one sounds like when you're dead.' Age, and the developmental nature of embodied metaphor; 5. 'I did not know where I started and where I ended.' Different bodies: different minds? How handedness, body shape and gender affect the way we experience the world through metaphor; 6. 'Those cookies tasted of regret and rotting flesh.' Sensory metaphor and associated impairments and conditions; 7. 'Things come out of my mouth that shouldn't be there.' 'Altered minds': the impact of depression and psychological disorders on the way people experience the world through metaphor; 8. 'This is my body which will be given up for you.' Individual differences in personality, thinking style, political stance and religious beliefs; 9. 'Malodorous blacksmiths and lazy livers.' Cross-linguistic and cross-cultural variation in embodied metaphor; 10. Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThis book explores how humor can be explained, in order to aid communication. Accessible to a wide readership of not only students and teachers of language and linguistics, but also those in related disciplines to which the understanding and use of humor is relevant, such as literature, psychology, anthropology, and the performing arts.Trade Review'A hilarious romp through a cornucopia of examples on a dizzying variety of subjects. Quintessential Nilsens' work!' Salvatore Attardo, Texas A & M University'… a must read for any of us in humor studies, English, and several other disciplines … the perfect complement to the former papers on each of the topics covered, all gathered in one readable and clearly written volume. The field of humor research is, as always, greatly enhanced by the Nilsens, and no library would be complete without their newest compilation.' Joyce M. Saltman, Professor Emeritus, Southern Connecticut State University'… it is a very interesting and concise reading … it is an essential reading for everyone who wants to gain a general perspective on humorous issues in important areas of human activity.' Roula Saltidou, The European Journal of Humour ResearchTable of Contents1. Introduction and overview; 2. Humor in anthropology; 3. Humor and art; 4. Humor and Business; 5. Humor and computer science; 6. Humor and education; 7. Humor and gender studies; 8. Humor and geography; 9. Humor and gerontology; 10. Humor and history; 11. Humor and journalism; 12. Humor and law; 13. Humor and linguistics; 14. Humor and literature; 15. Humor in medicine and health; 16. Humor and music; 17. Humor in names and naming; 18. Humor in the performing arts; 19. Humor and philosophy; 20. Humor in physical education and sports; 21. Humor and politics; 22. Humor and psychology; 23 Humor and religion; 24. Humor in rhetoric and composition; 25. Humor and sociology; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisAbstract concepts are often embodied through metaphor. For example, we talk about moving through time in metaphorical terms, as if we were moving through space, allowing us to ''look back'' on past events. Much of the work on embodied metaphor to date has assumed a single set of universal, shared bodily experiences that motivate our understanding of abstract concepts. This book explores sources of variation in people''s experiences of embodied metaphor, including, for example, the shape and size of one''s body, one''s age, gender, state of mind, physical or linguistic impairments, personality, ideology, political stance, religious beliefs, and linguistic background. It focuses on the ways in which people''s experiences of metaphor fluctuate over time within a single communicative event or across a lifetime. Combining theoretical argument with findings from new studies, Littlemore analyses sources of variation in embodied metaphor and provides a deeper understanding of the nature of embTrade Review'Lucidly written and well argued, the monograph successfully shows us why this project is worth pursuing.' Shengxi Jin, Journal of PragmaticsTable of Contents1. 'I am trying to climb Everest in flip-flops.' What is embodied metaphor and where does it come from?; 2. 'Would you prefer a pencil or an antiseptic wipe?' What evidence is there for embodied metaphor and why is it important to consider this variation?; 3. 'I'm running on this soapy conveyor belt with people throwing wet sponges at me.' Which metaphors are embodied and when? Variation according to type, function and context; 4. 'This one sounds like a bell and this one sounds like when you're dead.' Age, and the developmental nature of embodied metaphor; 5. 'I did not know where I started and where I ended.' Different bodies: different minds? How handedness, body shape and gender affect the way we experience the world through metaphor; 6. 'Those cookies tasted of regret and rotting flesh.' Sensory metaphor and associated impairments and conditions; 7. 'Things come out of my mouth that shouldn't be there.' 'Altered minds': the impact of depression and psychological disorders on the way people experience the world through metaphor; 8. 'This is my body which will be given up for you.' Individual differences in personality, thinking style, political stance and religious beliefs; 9. 'Malodorous blacksmiths and lazy livers.' Cross-linguistic and cross-cultural variation in embodied metaphor; 10. Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisTaking as its starting point what is sometimes called ''the prison house of language'' - the widespread feeling that language falls terribly short when it comes to articulating the rich and disparate contents of the human mental tapestry - this book sets out a radically new view of the interplay between language, literature and mind. Shifting the focus from the literary text itself to literature as a case of human agency, it reconsiders a wide range of interdisciplinary issues including the move from world to mind, the existence or otherwise of a property of literariness or essence of art, the nature of literature as a unique output of human cognition and the possible distinctiveness of the mind that creates it. In constant dialogue with philosophy, linguistics and the cognitive sciences, this book offers an invaluable new treatment of literature and literary language, and sketches novel directions for literary study in the twenty-first century.Trade Review'Probably the best book on literature, language and mind I have ever read. It makes a case for genuinely reciprocal interdisciplinary practices and points the way to epistemologically more robust study in the arts and humanities. It will be hugely influential.' Tim Wharton, University of BrightonTable of ContentsPrologue; 1. The question of expressibility or how far it is possible to speak our mind; 2. Language, world and mind; 3. The curse of the phenomenal: a case from Kinaesthesia; 4. After structural essentialism what? Implications for the inadequacy of language thesis; 5. Literature as artifact v literature as a cognitive object. Implications for linguistic pessimism; 6. Literature as meaning v literature as experience; 7. Interdisciplinarity, theory and the sciences of mind; Afterword.

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Book SynopsisTransforming Early English shows how historical pragmatics can offer a powerful explanatory framework for the changes medieval English and Older Scots texts undergo, as they are transmitted over time and space. The book argues that formal features such as spelling, script and font, and punctuation - often neglected in critical engagement with past texts - relate closely to dynamic, shifting socio-cultural processes, imperatives and functions. This theme is illustrated through numerous case-studies in textual recuperation, ranging from the reinvention of Old English poetry and prose in the later medieval and early modern periods, to the eighteenth-century ''vernacular revival'' of literature in Older Scots.Trade Review'The questions that the book attempts to answer … are … extremely relevant, as any answers will have immediate and crucial import on the field of linguistics in general.' Marcin Krygier, Studia Anglica PosnaniensiaTable of ContentsPrologue. Snatched from the fire: the case of Thomas Percy; 1. On historical pragmatics; 2. Inventing the Anglo-Saxons; 3. 'Witnesses preordained by God': the reception of Middle English religious prose; 4. The great tradition: Langland, Gower, Chaucer; 5. Forging the nation: reworking older Scottish literature; 6. On textual transformations: Walter Scott and beyond.

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Book SynopsisHow did physicians come to dominate the medical profession? Lyn Bennett challenges the seemingly self-evident belief that scientific competence accounts for physicians'' dominance. Instead, she argues that the whole enterprise of learned medicine was, in large measure, facilitated by an intensely classical education that included extensive training in rhetoric, and that this rhetorical training is ultimately responsible for the achievement of professional dominance. Bennett examines previously unexplored connections among writers and genres as well as competing livelihoods and classes. Engaging the histories of rhetoric, medicine, literature, and culture throughout, she goes on to focus specifically on the work of women who professed as well as practiced medicine. Pointing to some of the ways women''s writing shapes realities of body, mind, and spirit as it negotiates social, cultural, and professional ideologies of gender, this book offers an important corrective to some long-held beliefs about women''s role in early modern discourse.Trade Review'Lyn Bennett's … detailed new book offers an original perspective on the development of the medical profession in the seventeenth century.' Aurélie Griffin, Modern Language ReviewTable of ContentsIntroduction. 'Their plausible rhetoric'; Part I. Rhetoric and Medicine: 1. 'Another mans profession': physicians and clerics; 2. 'Onely the learned': physicians, empirics, and women; 3. 'An eloquent tongue': physicians and patients; Part II. The Woman Writer: 4. 'Publishing those truthes': women and affliction; 5. 'Hard words and rhetoricall phrases': women and learned medicine; 6. 'A bare physician stuft with words': women and domestic healing.

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Book SynopsisProvides a philosophical and historical critique of contemporary conceptions of physicalism, especially non-reductive, levels-based approaches to physicalist metaphysics. Challenging assumptions about the mind-body problem, this accessible book will interest scholars working in metaphysics, philosophy of mind, and philosophy of science.Trade ReviewAdvance praise: 'Physicalism Deconstructed is a beautifully clear and readable book that throws down the gauntlet for physicalists to accept the consequences of their core commitments. Kevin Morris advances an unexpectedly persuasive argument that the world according to physics really is all the world. This challenge to the layer cake view of reality cannot be ignored.' Thomas Polger, University of CincinnatiTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Supervenience and non-reductive physicalism; 2. Non-reductive physicalism and the exclusion problem; 3. Functional realization; 4. Subset realization; 5. Grounding and physicalism; 6. The rise of non-reductive physicalism; 7. The physicalist problematic reconsidered; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThe philosophy of language is central to the concerns of those working across semantics, pragmatics and cognition, as well as the philosophy of mind and ideas. Bringing together an international team of leading scholars, this handbook provides a comprehensive guide to contemporary investigations into the relationship between language, philosophy, and linguistics. Chapters are grouped into thematic areas and cover a wide range of topics, from key philosophical notions, such as meaning, truth, reference, names and propositions, to characteristics of the most recent research in the field, including logicality of language, vagueness in natural language, value judgments, slurs, deception, proximization in discourse, argumentation theory and linguistic relativity. It also includes chapters that explore selected linguistic theories and their philosophical implications, providing a much-needed interdisciplinary perspective. Showcasing the cutting-edge in research in the field, this book is essTable of Contents1. Philosophy of Language: Definitions, Disciplines and Approaches Piotr Stalmaszczyk; Part I. The Past, Present, and Future of Philosophy of Language: 2. The History of the Philosophy of Language Before Frege Michael Losonsky; 3. How the Philosophy of Language Grew out of Analytic Philosophy Daniel W. Harris; 4. Philosophy of Language for the Twenty-First Century Scott Soames; Part II. Some Foundational Issues: 5. Philosophy of Language, Ontology and Logic Chris Fox; 6. Frege's Legacy in the Philosophy of Language and Mind Eros Corazza; 7. Metasemantics and Metapragmatics: Philosophical Foundations of Meaning Kasia M. Jaszczolt; 8. Internalist Perspectives on Language John Collins; 9. Semantic Content and Utterance Context: A Spectrum of Approaches Emma Borg and Sarah A. Fisher; 10. Semantic Minimalism and Contextualism in Light of the Logicality of Language Guillermo Del Pinal; Part III. From Truth to Vagueness: 11. Truth and Theories of Truth Panu Raatikainen; 12. Reference and Theories of Reference Genoveva Martí; 13. Names in Philosophy André Bazzoni; 14. Indexicals and Contextual Involvement Katarzyna Kijania-Placek; 15. Natural Kind Terms Luis Fernández Moreno; 16. Vagueness in Natural Language Joanna Odrowąż-Sypniewska; Part IV. Issues in Semantics and Pragmatics: 17. Entailment, Presupposition, Implicature Roberta Colonna Dahlman; 18. Speech Acts, Actions, and Events Brian Ball; 19. Propositions, Predication, and Assertion Peter Hanks; 20. Events in Semantics Alexander Williams; 21. Semantics and Generative Grammar Jarosław Jakielaszek; 22. Metasemantics: A Normative Perspective (and the Case of Mood) Manuel García-Carpintero; 23. The Normativity of Meaning and Content Alexander Miller; 24. The Semantics and Pragmatics of Value Judgments Andrés Soria Ruiz, Bianca Cepollaro and Isidora Stojanovic; 25. Slurs: Semantic and Pragmatic Theories of Meaning Leopold Hess; Part V. Philosophical Implications and Linguistic Theories: 26. Philosophical Implications of Generative Grammar Peter Ludlow; 27. Conceptual Semantics and its Implications for Philosophy of Language Ray Jackendoff; 28. Relevance Theory and the Philosophy of Language Robyn Carston; 29. Mental Files François Recanati; 30. Contemporary Discourse Studies and Philosophy of Language Piotr Cap; Part VI. Some Extensions: 31. The Philosophy of Argument Jean H. M. Wagemans; 32. Negation and Denial Stephen Mumford; 33. Deception: Lying and Beyond Marta Dynel; 34. Types and Definitions of Irony Eleni Kapogianni; 35. Philosophy of Language and Metaphor Esther Romero and Belén Soria; 36. Analytic Philosophy of Literature Jukka Mikkonen; 37. The Many Facets of Linguistic Relativity Antonio Blanco Salgueiro.

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Book SynopsisPragmatics the study of language in context, and of how we understand what other people say is a core subject in English language, linguistics, and communication studies. This textbook introduces the key topics in this fast-moving field, including metaphor, irony, politeness, disambiguation, and reference assignment. It walks the reader through the essential theories in pragmatics, including Grice, relevance theory, speech act theory, and politeness theory. Each chapter includes a range of illustrative examples, guiding readers from the basic principles to a thorough understanding of the topics. A dedicated chapter examines how research is conducted in pragmatics, providing students with resources and ideas for developing their own projects. Featuring exercises, a comprehensive glossary, and suggestions for further reading, this book is accessible to beginner undergraduates, including those with no prior knowledge of linguistics. It is an essential resource for courses in English lanTrade Review'Comprehensive but concise, full of complex concepts described in elegant terms, Pragmatics in English is a must-read for all students of pragmatics, and thoroughly recommended to academics in the field also.' Tim Wharton, Principal Lecturer in Linguistics, University of Brighton'Scott has produced a masterful introduction to the major pragmatic theories from the latter half of the twentieth century. These are presented in a highly accessible way, using fresh examples that enliven the descriptions of these frameworks, and which make it clear how these theories are relevant to students today.' Anne Bezuidenhout, Professor of Philosophy & Linguistics, University of South CarolinaTable of ContentsList of figures; List of tables; Preface; Acknowledgements; 1. What is pragmatics?; 2. Speaker's meaning; 3. Speech act theory; 4. Gricean pragmatics; 5. Pragmatics beyond grice; 6. Relevance-theoretic pragmatics; 7. Applying relevance theory; 8. Figurative language; 9. Politeness; 10. Researching pragmatics; Glossary; References; Index.

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Book SynopsisWhich language should philosophers use: technical or common language? In a book as important for intellectual historians as it is for philosophers, Lodi Nauta addresses a vital question which still has resonance today: is the discipline of philosophy assisted or disadvantaged by employing a special vocabulary? By the Middle Ages philosophy had become a highly technical discipline, with its own lexicon and methods. The Renaissance humanist critique of this specialised language has been dismissed as philosophically superficial, but the author demonstrates that it makes a crucial point: it is through the misuse of language that philosophical problems arise. He charts the influence of this critique on early modern philosophers, including Hobbes and Locke, and shows how it led to the downfall of medieval Aristotelianism and the gradual democratization of language and knowledge. His book will be essential reading for anyone interested in the transition from medieval to modern philosophy.Trade Review'Nauta is among the most distinguished historians of philosophy today. His study breaks new ground by concentrating on a vital issue in the early modern rivalry between humanism and scholasticism which still has great resonance in modern academe: the advantages and disadvantages that accrue to philosophy, or any professionalized study, from employing a special technical vocabulary to discuss philosophical problems.' James Hankins, Harvard University'This book is a great and inspiring tour d'horizon into philosophical reflection on the use of language – and, consequently, on linguistic practice – from the emergence of Renaissance humanism to major thinkers such as Hobbes and Locke​. The author invites us into his novel and fascinating story of the genesis of Renaissance and Early Modern (and even contemporary) philosophy.' Jan Papy, Catholic University of LeuvenTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Early Humanist Critics of Scholastic Language: Francesco Petrarca and Leonardo Bruni; 2. From a Linguistic Point of View: Lorenzo Valla's Critique of Aristotelian-Scholastic Philosophy; 3. Giovanni Pontano on Language, Meaning, and Grammar; 4. Juan Luis Vives on Language, Knowledge, and the Topics; 5. Anti-Essentialism and the Rhetoricization of Knowledge: Mario Nizolio's Humanist Attack on Universals; 6. Skepticism and the Critique of Language in Francisco Sanches; 7. Thomas Hobbes and the Rhetoric of Common Language; 8. Between Private Signification and Common Use: Locke on Ideas, Words, and the Social Dimension of Language; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThis concise and affordable anthology is designed for use as a textbook in both undergraduate and graduate courses in philosophy of language. It aims to provide a core of essential primary sources and may be used either on its own, or in conjunction with a secondary source.Table of ContentsAcknowledgementsPrefaceI. Syntax and Semantics(The System Perspective) Noam Chomsky, “Knowledge of Language: Its Nature, Origin and Use” Gottlob Frege, “Ueber Sinn und Bedeutung” Bertrand Russell, “Descriptions” Donald Davidson, “Truth and Meaning” Saul Kripke, “Identity and Necessity” II. Mental States and Linguistic Content(The Knowledge Perspective)A. Meanings and Ideas H. Paul Grice, “Meaning” Jerry A. Fodor, “Propositional Attitudes” Daniel C. Dennett, “Three Kinds of Intentional Psychology” B. Skeptical Worries W.V. Quine, “Two Dogmas of Empiricism” Ludwig Wittgenstein, Selections from Philosophical Investigations III. Language and Speakers(The Use Perspective)A. Speech Acts John L. Austin, “Performative Utterances” John R. Searle, “What Is A Speech Act?” B. Speaker’s Meaning and Reference H. Paul Grice, “Logic and Conversation” Peter F. Strawson, “On Referring” Keith Donnellan, “Reference and Definite Descriptions” Donald Davidson, “What Metaphors Mean” Sources

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Book SynopsisSince ancient times, philosophers have written about "the will". But the will is more than a philosophic and scholarly topic. In our everyday speech, what do we mean when we speak of the "will"? Will-words turn up everywhere in the English language. We make wills. We exert our willpower. We are wilful at times but merely willing at others. Above all, will is there a hundred times a day, when we use the auxiliary verb "will" to express our intentions or expectations for the future, or simply to indicate the future tense. Yet it takes only a moment''s reflection to see that there''s a tremendous range of meaning here, and so something to think about. Moreover, all of us have wondered now and then, probably both as children and as adults, whether we are really free, and whether being free means being able to do what we want or being free of wants and desires or something else entirely. That is, we have all wrestled with the issue of free will in our informal, non-scholarly ways. Finally, we have probably all asked ourselves whether people who talk about will and willpower are all talking about the same thing or even talking sense. These are among the issues that Eva Brann puts at the centre of Un-Willing. She takes the whole range of questions about the will that are implicit in our everyday lives and everyday thinking, articulates them, shows us how they have been dealt with within the philosophic tradition and contemporary scientific thought -- and then wrestles with them herself.

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Book SynopsisThis volume presents new conceptual and experimental studies which investigate the connection between vagueness and rationality from various systematic directions, such as philosophy, linguistics, cognitive psychology, computing science, and economics. Vagueness in language use and cognition has traditionally been interpreted in epistemic or semantic terms. The standard view of vagueness specifically suggests that considerations of agency or rationality, broadly conceived, can be left out of the equation. Most recently, new literature on vagueness has been released which suggests that the standard view is inadequate and that considerations of rationality should factor into more comprehensive models of vagueness. The methodological approaches presented here are diverse, ranging from philosophical interpretations of rational credence for vagueness to adaptations of choice theory (dynamic choice theory, revealed preference models, social choice theory), probabilistic models of pragmatic reasoning (Bayesian pragmatics), evolutionary game theory, and conceptual space models of categorisation.Table of ContentsPart I: Vagueness in Rational Choice.- Vagueness and Imprecise Credence by Anna Mahtani.- Problems of Precision in Fuzzy Theories of Vagueness and Bayesian Epistemology by Nicholas J. J. Smith.- Regret, Sub-optimality, and Vagueness by Chrisoula Andreou.- Part II: Rationality in Vague Language Use and Cognition.- The Elusive Benefits of Vagueness: The Evidence so far by Matthew James Green and Kees van Deemter.- Towards an Ecology of Vagueness by José Pedro Correia and Michael Franke.- The Rationality of Vagueness by Igor Douven.- Semantic Indecision by Timoth W. Grinsell.- Grounding a Pragmatic Theory of Vagueness on Experimental Data: Semi-orders adn Weber's Law by Arnold Kochari and Robert van Rooij

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Book SynopsisArchitecture and urbanism seem to be "weak" disciplines, constantly struggling for a better understanding of their nature and disciplinary borders. The huge amount of metaphors appearing in the discourse of both not only reference to their creative nature but also indicate their weakness and the missing piece strengthening their own understanding: a definition of space for architecture and of city for urbanism. But using metaphors in this field implies a problem - though metaphors achieve to bring opposites together, there remains the question how literal they can actually become in order to relate to these subjects properly. In this volume, several authors from various fields using different approaches discuss this question.

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Book SynopsisThis past decade or so, the study of East Norse philology has been experiencing something of a renaissance. This volume contains twelve articles written by international scholars from seven different countries. Based on papers given at the Fourth International Conference for East Norse Philology held in Cologne in June 2019, this volume presents the latest research within areas such as Text Witness and Linguistics, Paleography as well as Codicology, Transmission, Adaptation, and Media Change. Three Crowns and Eleven Tears: East Norse Philology from Cologne is the fourth volume published by Selskab for Østnordisk Filologi Sällskap för östnordisk filologi, founded in Uppsala in 2013.

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Book SynopsisThis book is intended as counter-evidence to the perception that Linguistics is a domain of dusty schoolroom grammar. It follows that linguistics can be characterised differently than as proponents of theoretical orientations who spend their brief breaks from their bone-dry work bashing each other over the head with their different favourite abstractions. The discipline may appear to outsiders as fragmented and -- worse still -- lacking in relevance to the real world outside its gates. This book demonstrates that Linguistics, in all its varied branches, can be entertaining as well as thought-provoking, and that its domain is indeed a coherent one despite all the internecine squabbling. In an unconventional way Michael Fortescue introduces his subject as a kind of fable with a historical moral that professional linguists, as well as students, should enjoy as a useful commentary on the state of the discipline today.

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Book SynopsisThis book introduces a post-modern attitude into the science of language. In accordance with its own Critico-Philological Method the essay is a constructive critique of the transcendent foundationalism of modern synchronic linguistics. Without falling into nihilistic pitfalls of the post-modern mind''s antifoundationalism, the author demonstrates both how the static essentialism of modern linguistics turns out to be a transcendent, metaphysical statement of only a section of the everyday language, and how the synchronicity of modern linguistics cannot deliver on its promises to produce empirically relevant and non-shortening descriptions of the dynamic existence of the everyday language. Rehabilitating the Erkenntnisswert of the non-transcendent use of the everyday language -- a project with Glossematic, ''Hermeneutical'' and ''Deconstructivist'' overtones - the Synchronic Fallacy presents an argument against the modern synchronisation of historical linguistics and demonstrates the possibility of constructing a historical theory through the introduction of the Existential Function of the everyday language as an implementation of man''s temporally structured mind, our historical sense. The essay''s critical analyses of the four conceptual pillars of modern, static linguistics -- system, structure, state, synchrony -- evolve a determination of the temporal-dynamic nature of structure/Structuralism so that the essay''s view of our tradition''s purported antinomy: ''structure and history'', dovetails with the advanced view of language: language change is not to be seen or observed, but comprehended.

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Book SynopsisThis book addresses the dynamic interplay between creativity and continuity in communication. Though conventionalisation is essential to any understanding of the foundation of interaction and language, thus far it has not been the subject of any substantial collective effort. New research presented here seeks to redress this. An introductory chapter critically reviews the theoretical assumptions and pitfalls of twentieth-century approaches to communication and conventionalisation. The successive chapters are by scholars from different theoretical backgrounds within language and literature. They study the processes of conventionalisation from the complementary perspectives of linguistic and literary research traditions and cover a diverse field of cognitive, social, and historical aspects of language. The target readership of the book is scholars and students of language and communication -- including literacy and literary studies and philosophy of language -- who are interested in foundational issues and their profound implications for empirical analysis.

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Book SynopsisThe purpose of this book is to give a precise meaning to the formula: English is the language of imperialism. Understanding that statement involves a critique of the dominant views of language, both in the field of linguistics (the book has a chapter criticising Chomsky’s research programme) and of the philosophy of language (the book has a chapter assessing Habermas’s philosophy of communicative action). The book aims at constructing a Marxist philosophy of language, embodying a view of language as a social, historical, material and political phenomenon. Since there has never been a strong tradition of thinking about language in Marxism, the book provides an overview of the question of Marxism in language (from Stalin’s pamphlet to Voloshinov's book, taking in an essay by Pasolini), and it seeks to construct a number of concepts for a Marxist philosophy of language. The book belongs to the tradition of Marxist critique of dominant ideologies. It should be particularly useful to those who, in the fields of language study, literature and communication studies, have decided that language is not merely an instrument of communication.Trade Review"Lecercle’s book is definitely thought provoking [...]" - Piotr Stalmaszczyk, in: Marx & Philosophy Review of Books, 17 November 2010 "many excellent points [...] this book has to offer" - Peter Ives, in: Capital & Class 94:162-166Table of Contents1. 'Chirac est un ver' 2. Critique of Linguistics 3. Critique of the Philosophy of Language 4. The Marxist Tradition 5. Continuations 6. Propositions (1) 7. Propositions (2) Conclusion: Contrasting Short Glossaries of Philosophy of Language References Index

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Trade Review‘Read this first, then read Chomsky.’John Searle, New York Review of Books ‘John Lyons’ book on Chomsky is simply the best short introduction in the English language. It is within the grasp of an intelligent layman. Anyone who reads it will understand the elements of tranformational grammar, and be able to follow current controversies.’Leonard Jackson, Times Educational Supplement ‘Lyons’ account is itself a minor modern masterpiece of compression and clarity.’Alan Ryan, New Society

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Book SynopsisThe book suggests a new perspective on the essence of human language. This enormous achievement of our species is best characterized as a communication technology - not unlike the social media on the Net today - that was collectively invented by ancient humans for a very particular communicative function: the instruction of imagination. All other systems of communication in the biological world target the interlocutors'' senses; language allows speakers to systematically instruct their interlocutors in the process of imagining the intended meaning - instead of directly experiencing it. This revolutionary function has changed human life forever, and in the book it operates as a unifying concept around which a new general theory of language gradually emerges. Dor identifies a set of fundamental problems in the linguistic sciences - the nature of words, the complexities of syntax, the interface between semantics and pragmatics, the causal relationship between language and thought, languagTrade ReviewFor anyone interested in language and how it works in modern day society, Dor offers a compelling account of competing positions in discourse linguistics...Overall, Dor's book has the potential to establish a new foundation for a communicative socially-based linguistic theory. Dor offers a framework for bringing together the two sides of linguistics which typically form psycholinguistics and socio-linguistics, and the book is about unpacking the tensions across the cognitive-social divide that can be said to be at play in trying to theorize new constructs. * Gavin Budge, The British Society for Literature and Science *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. The Functional Specificity of Language ; 3. How the Technology Works ; 4. Sign and Meaning ; 5. The Spiral of Relativity ; 6. Production and Comprehension ; 7. The Social Autonomy of Syntax ; 8. The Universality of Diversity ; 9. Acquisition as a Collective Enterprise ; 10. The Evolution of Language and its Users ; 11. Conclusion ; References

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Book SynopsisLanguage, Cognition, and Human Nature collects together for the first time much of Steven Pinker''s most influential scholarly work on language and cognition. Pinker''s seminal research explores the workings of language and its connections to cognition, perception, social relationships, child development, human evolution, and theories of human nature. This eclectic collection spans Pinker''s thirty-year career, exploring his favorite themes in greater depth and scientific detail. It includes thirteen of Pinker''s classic articles, ranging over topics such as language development in children, mental imagery, the recognition of shapes, the computational architecture of the mind, the meaning and uses of verbs, the evolution of language and cognition, the nature-nurture debate, and the logic of innuendo and euphemism. Each outlines a major theory or takes up an argument with another prominent scholar, such as Stephen Jay Gould, Noam Chomsky, or Richard Dawkins. Featuring a new introduction by Pinker that discusses his books and scholarly work, this collection reflects essential contributions to cognitive science by one of our leading thinkers and public intellectuals.Trade ReviewPinker is a star, and the world of science is lucky to have him." * Richard Dawkins, The Times Literary Supplement, 2002 *Steven Pinker is among the best synthesizers in the cognitive sciences. He is unique in the breadth of his interests and the depth of his knowledge. To top it off, his elegant and witty writings speak equally to specialists and to literate individuals everywhere." * Howard Gardner, Hobbs Professor of Cognition and Education, Harvard University *Pinker is an intellectual giant in the field, one of the most important psychologists and thinkers in our day. This compilation is outstanding, a fitting crown on his career so far, although I suspect he has much more to contribute. Even though I'd read a handful of these papers before, there were some that I was unaware of that are gems. Even those I'd read before, I re-read, and got even more on the second reading." * David Buss, author of Evolutionary Psychology: The New Science of the Mind *With wit and acumen, Pinker introduces us to some of his most important scientific contributions. These glimpses into the development of these foundational articles and of course the articles themselves will be of great interest to academics and to his many fans beyond the walls of academia." * David C. Geary, author of Male, Female: The Evolution of Human Sex Difference *Pinker is a rarity among academic psychologists not only as a stylish writer, but also as a profound thinker with an ability to grasp the major issues of human nature and human evolution. Language, Cognition, and Human Nature: Selected Articles is as good an introduction as any into the range and depth of his thinking and will have general appeal beyond an academic readership." -Michael Corballis, PsycCRITIQUESTable of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Formal models of language learning ; 2. A computational theory of the mental imagery medium ; 3. Rules and connections in human language ; 4. When does human object recognition use a viewer-centered reference frame? ; 5. Natural language and natural selection ; 6. The acquisition of argument structure ; 7. The nature of human concepts: evidence from an unusual source ; 8. Why nature and nurture won't go away ; 9. The faculty of language: What's special about it? ; 10. So how does the mind work? ; 11. Deep commonalities between life and mind ; 12. Rationales for indirect speech: The theory of the strategic speaker ; 13. The cognitive niche: Coevolution of intelligence, sociality, and language ; Author Biography

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Book SynopsisThe influence of J. L. Austin on contemporary philosophy was substantial during his lifetime, and has grown greatly since his death, at the height of his powers, in 1960. Philosophical Papers, first published in 1961, was the first of three volumes of Austin''s work to be edited by J. O. Urmson and G. J. Warnock. Together with Sense and Sensibilia and How to do things with Words (both first published in 1962 and both still available), it has extended Austin''s influence far beyond the circle who knew him or read the handful of papers he published in journals.Table of ContentsAgathon and Eudaimonia in Ethics of Aristotle; Are there A Priori concepts?; The meaning of a word; Other minds; Truth; How to talk - some simple ways; Unfair to facts; A plea for excuses; Ifs and cans; Performative utterances; Pretending; Three ways of spilling ink; The line and the cave in Plato's Republic; Index

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Book SynopsisIn this in-depth work, Richards defines rhetoric as the study of misunderstanding and its remedies. Focusing on how words work in discourse, he examines the interaction of words with each other and with their contexts, demonstrating how a continual synthesis of meaning--or principle of metaphor--gives life to discussion. He also argues that we can better control and animate our use of words, and therefore decrease misunderstanding, by comprehending the waymeaning changes in discourse.Trade Review"Chosen largely to present the philosophy of language informing [Richards's] approach....Should stimulate thoughtful re-examinations of our own positions on the important issues Richards addresses."--Freshman English News "Masterful (and manageable)....Has long been needed."-D.G. Myers, Texas A&M University "A deftly compiled reader."--William Doreski, Keene State College "Written in a lively style...Coherent and valuable."--John F. Cox, University of Arizona "This is perhaps one of the best texts for rhetoric courses I've found, and I intend to use it each time I teach graduate/undergraduate rhetorical theory and other language-theory courses."--Professor Lynn Dianne Beene, University of New Mexico "....an important part of the foundation of contemporary rhetoric. Clear and to the point, Richards illuminates the place rhetoric occupies in human societies."--Dr. William O. Boggs, Slippery Rock University

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Book SynopsisThis reissue of an American philosophical classic includes a new preface by Cavell, in which he discusses the work''s reception and influence. The work fosters a fascinating relationship between philosophy and literature both by augmenting his philosophical discussions with examples from literature and by applying philosophical theories to literary texts. Cavell also succeeds in drawing some very important parallels between the British analytic tradition and the continental tradition, by comparing scepticism as understood in Descartes, Hume, and Kant with philosophy of language as practiced by Wittgenstein and Austin.Trade Review"An altogether remarkable work of American philosophy...that occupies the buffer zone between poetry and philosophy in a unique--and perhaps uniquely American way."--Critical Inquiry"An intensely personal and uniquely provocative book. Stanley Cavell is a philosophical original."--Review of MetaphysicsTable of ContentsPART ONE; WITTGENSTEIN AND THE CONCEPT OF HUMAN KNOWLEDGE; PART TWO; SKEPTICISM AND THE EXISTENCE OF THE WORLD; PART THREE; KNOWLEDGE AND THE CONCEPT OF MORALITY; PART FOUR; SKEPTICISM AND THE PROBLEM OF OTHERS

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Book SynopsisCombining up-to-date scholarship with clear and accessible language and helpful exercises, Metaphor: A Practical Introduction is an invaluable resource for all readers interested in metaphor. This second edition includes two new chapters-on ''metaphors in discourse'' and ''metaphor and emotion''-along with new exercises, responses to criticism and recent developments in the field, and revised student exercises, tables, and figures.Trade ReviewAn excellent introduction to conceptual metaphor, one which undergraduate students, graduate students, and general readers will find accessible yet thought-provoking. This edition has been significantly updated and improved, while retaining the features that have made it a well-loved book for students, such as clear expression, interesting exercises with a useful key, concise chapter summaries, and a very handy index of metaphors and metonymies. * Linguist List *Table of ContentsGLOSSARY; SOLUTIONS TO EXERCISES; REFERENCES; GENERAL INDEX; METAPHOR AND METONYMY INDEX

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Book SynopsisMichael Dummett is one of the most important and influential of contemporary philosophers; this book covers his work in the closely related fields of metaphysics and the philosophy of language.Trade ReviewDummett is clear and concise. * The Philosophers' Magazine *An impressive collection by one of the most influential of living English philosophers ... Reading him, one has the impression of being at the hub of the discussion in the philosophy of language and his points in other areas are invariably authoritative and original. It is welcome as an elaborate and useful contribution to contemporary philosophical thinking. * History and Philosophy of Logic *His observations are of great interest ... The publishers should be thanked for making it less likely that these important papers will escape the attention of philosophers. * International Philosophical Quarterly *Table of Contents1. What is a Theory of Meaning? (I) ; 2. What is a Theory of Meaning? (II) ; 3. What do I Know When I Know a Language? ; 4. What does the Appeal to Use do for the Theory of Meaning? ; 5. Language and Truth ; 6. Truth and Meaning * ; 7. Language and Communication ; 8. The Source of the Concept of Truth ; 9. Mood, Force, and Convention * ; 10. Frege and Husserl on Reference ; 11. Realism ; 12. Existence ; 13. Does Quantification Involve Identity? ; 14. Could there be Unicorns? + ; 15. Causal Loops ; 16. Common Sense and Physics ; 17. Testimony and Memory * ; 18. What is Mathematics About? ; 19. Wittgenstein on Necessity: Some Reflections ; 20. Realism and Anti-Realism *

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Book SynopsisThis volume contains thirteen papers, including two previously unpublished, by Gareth Evans, a brilliant philosopher who died in 1980 at the age of 34. The treatments of problems about language are here informed by a lively sense of interconnections with issues in metaphysics and the problem of mind, and some of the papers are primarly directed to problems in these fields. Anyone who is concerned with the central questions of philosophy will be interested in this collection.Trade ReviewGareth Evans ... was widely regarded as the most brilliant and exciting philosopher of his generation ... The present volume now collects his previously published papers ... together with two substantial unpublished pieces ... These two papers, like the older ones, exemplify Evans's great virtues--his ability to develop sophisticated arguments with great clarity, his lightly worn technical expertise, and above all his capacity to get to the very heart of philosophical issues. This is analytical philosophy of the very highest quality. Those who already know Evans's work will be grateful to have his scattered papers brought together in this handsome volume; and any professional philosopher or advanced student unfamiliar with his work has an intellectual treat in store. * British Book News *

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Book SynopsisSubjective, Intersubjective, Objective is the long-awaited third volume of philosophical writings by Donald Davidson, whose influence on philosophy since the 1960s has been deep and broad. His first two collections, published by OUP in the early 1980s, are recognized as contemporary classics. Now Davidson presents a selection of his work on knowledge, mind, and language from the 1980s and the 1990s. We all have knowledge of our own minds, knowledge of the contents of other minds, and knowledge of the shared environment. Davidson examines the nature and status of each of these three sorts of knowledge, and the connections and differences among them. Along the way he has illuminating things to say about truth, human rationality, and the relations among language, thought, and the world.This new volume offers a rich and rewarding feast for anyone interested in philosophy today, and is essential reading for anyone working on its central topics.Trade ReviewDavidson's philosophical project is one of the most remarkable and productive of the twentieth century. * Kirk Ludwig, Mind Journal *There is a wealth of fascinating ideas here ... Davidson's project is ambitious, but his vision is immensely powerful and its execution highly ingenious. It is a very considerable achievement at the intersection of epistemology, philosophy of mind and philosophy of language. * Philosophical Investigations *Davidson writes philosophy like Wagner wrote operas: nothing less than everything is ever at stake. * Jerry Fodor, London Review of Books *Ces essais contiennent les principes de sa théorie de la connaissance. Réconcilier, comme ce volume s'en donne le programme, connaissance de soi, connaissance d'autrui, et connaissance du monde commun, n'est pas un programme aisé. Quoi qu'il en soit, l'ambition est là, et la constance, la profondeur de la recherche de Davidson depuis une vingtaine d'années sont manifestes. A peu près tous les thèmes classiques de la philosophie analytique sont ici retravaillés, approfondis, et modifiés, dans une prose extrêmement travaillée. Peu de philosophes ont eu une influence si forte sur la philosophie de ces derniè res dé cennies, aussi bien dans les pays anglophones qu'en Europe. Qu'on suive ou non Davidson dans son ambitieux projet, qui ne vise rien moins qu'à concilier naturalisme et normativité, la lecture de ce volume est un must. * Pascal Engel, Revue Philosophique *Table of Contents1. FIRST PERSON AUTHORITY (1984) ; 7. RATIONAL ANIMALS (1982) ; 10. A COHERENCE THEORY (1983)

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Book SynopsisTruth, Language, and History is the much-anticipated final volume of Donald Davidson''s philosophical writings. In the four groups of essays that comprise it, Davidson continues to explore the themes that occupied him for more than fifty years: the relations between language and the world; speaker intention and linguistic meaning; language and mind; mind and body; mind and world; mind and other minds. He asks: what is the role of the concept of truth in these explorations? And, can a scientific world view make room for human thought without reducing it to something material and mechanistic? Davidson''s underlying picture, which can be seen in many of these essays, is that we are acquainted directly with the world, not indirectly via some intermediary such as sense-data, representations, or language itself; that thought emerges in the first place through interpersonal communication in a shared material world, and continues to develop as we engage each other in dialogue; and that languagTrade Review'While every one of the five volumes of Davidson's essays is a philosophical treasure trove, all containing influential and important essays, this final volume is especially interesting since it encompasses a number of key topics that are of special significance in Davidson's thinking. . . . One of the great merits of this volume is that it does indeed give a sense of the breadth of Davidson's thinking, and of the extent to which it extended beyond the usual confines of traditional "analytic" philosophy. . . . the radical and idiosyncratic character of Davidson's thinking is still, it seems to me, very much underappreciated and often unrecognised . . . The hope is that the publication of the essays in this volume, along with the essays included in the other four . . . will eventually give rise to a more integrated appreciation of Davidson's work - work that constitutes one of the landmarks of twentieth-century philosophy' * Jeff Malpas, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of ContentsTRUTH ; LANGUAGE ; ANOMALOUS MONISM ; HISTORICAL THOUGHTS

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Book SynopsisProvides a comprehensive introduction to the major philosophical theories attempting to explain the workings of language.Trade ReviewOriginal, provocative, and illuminating....Deserves to be widely read. Blackburn's mastery of the issues, and of the extensive literature, is very impressive, his philosophical judgment is good, and his treatment of the issues is consistently intelligent, sensitive, fair-minded, and insightful. * Nous *

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Book SynopsisAn attempt to provide a unified solution to a number of philosophical puzzles through a study of blindspots, ie consistent propositions that cannot be rationally accepted by certain individuals even if they are true.Trade Review'the book is challenging and extremely interesting. It will, I am certain, provike a good deal of exciting philosophical discussion.'Times Literary Supplement'Blindspots is full of stimulating discussions of innumerable philosophically interesting puzzles and problems ... It shows a lively sense of humour ... and reveals a knack for the provocative' Lloyd Humberstone, Monash University, Australasian Journal of Philosophy

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Book SynopsisVagueness leads to indeterminacies in the application of the law in many cases. This book responds to the challenges that those indeterminacies pose to a theory of law and adjudication.The book puts controversies in legal theory in a new light, using arguments in the philosophy of language to offer an explanation of the unclarities that arise in borderline cases for the application of vague expressions. But the author also argues that vagueness is a feature of law, and not merely of legal language: the linguistic and non-linguistic resources of the law are commonly vague.These claims have consequences that have seemed unacceptable to many legal theorists. Because law is vague, judges cannot always decide cases by giving effect to the legal rights and obligations of the parties. Judges cannot always treat like cases alike. The ideal of the rule of law seems to be unattainable. The book offers a new articulation of the content of that ideal. It argues that the pursuit of justice and the Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. Linguistic Indeterminacy ; 3. Sources of Indeterminacy ; 4. Vagueness and Legal Theory ; 5. How not to Solve the Paradox of the Heap ; 6. The Epistemic Theory of Vagueness ; 7. Vagueness and Similarity ; 8. Vagueness and Interpretation ; 9. The Impossibility of the Rule of Law ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisPaolo Mancosu presents a series of innovative studies in the history and the philosophy of logic and mathematics in the first half of the twentieth century. The Adventure of Reason is divided into five main sections: history of logic (from Russell to Tarski); foundational issues (Hilbert''s program, constructivity, Wittgenstein, Gödel); mathematics and phenomenology (Weyl, Becker, Mahnke); nominalism (Quine, Tarski); semantics (Tarski, Carnap, Neurath). Mancosu exploits extensive untapped archival sources to make available a wealth of new material that deepens in significant ways our understanding of these fascinating areas of modern intellectual history. At the same time, the book is a contribution to recent philosophical debates, in particular on the prospects for a successful nominalist reconstruction of mathematics, the nature of finitist intuition, the viability of alternative definitions of logical consequence, and the extent to which phenomenology can hope to account for the exaTrade ReviewThis book contains an enormous amount of material that historians will wish to consult. Mancosu convincingly demonstrates that there is a great deal more that we can still learn about the origins of modern mathematical logic. * Michael Potter, Philosophia Mathematica *Table of ContentsPART 1: HISTORY OF LOGIC; OART 2: FOUNDATIONS OF MATHEMATICS; PART 3: PHENOMENOLOGY AND MATHEMATICS; PART 4: NOMINALISM; PART 5: THE EMERGENCE OF SEMANTICS: TRUTH AND LOGICAL CONSEQUENCE

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Book SynopsisJohn Hawthorne and David Manley present an original treatment of the semantic phenomenon of reference and the cognitive phenomenon of singular thought. In Part I, they argue against the idea that either is tied to a special relation of causal or epistemic acquaintance. Part II challenges the alleged semantic rift between definite and indefinite descriptions on the one hand, and names and demonstratives on the other--a division that has been motivated in part by appeals to considerations of acquaintance. Drawing on recent work in linguistics and philosophical semantics, Hawthorne and Manley explore a more unified account of all four types of expression according to which none of them paradigmatically fits the profile of a referential term. On the preferred framework put forward in The Reference Book, all four types of expression involve existential quantification but admit of uses that exhibit many of the traits associated with reference--a phenomenon that is due to the presence of whatTrade Review'John Hawthorne and David Manley have two main objectives in this excellent book. The first is to demolish the common assumption, following Bertrand Russell, that some kind of acquaintance is required for both (singular) reference and singular thought. The second is to establish a semantic uniformity among four kinds of noun phrases - specific indefinite descriptions, definite descriptions, demonstratives, and proper names ... a wonderful book. The authors' writing style is lively . . . readable, and clear, and their very careful consideration of all sides of every issue should leave readers with a whole new appreciation of the complexity of those issues, and a sense that many of their automatic assumptions about the functioning of noun phrases in English (and most likely other languages as well) need to be revised.' * Barbara Abbott, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of ContentsPART I: AGAINST ACQUAINTANCE; PART II: BEYOND ACQUAINTANCE

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Book SynopsisThis volume presents twenty-two uncollected philosophical essays by Sir Peter Strawson, one of the leading philosophers of the second half of the twentieth century. The essays (two of them previously unpublished) are drawn from seven decades of work, from 1949 to 2003. They span the broad range of Strawson''s work: metaphysics, epistemology, philosophical logic, philosophy of language, ethical theory, and history of philosophy, along with metaphilosophical reflections and intellectual autobiography.Table of ContentsPreface ; 1. Ethical Intuitionism ; 2. In Defence of a Dogma ; 3. Construction and Analysis ; 4. Proper Names ; 5. The Post-Linguistic Thaw ; 6. Analysis, Science, and Metaphysics ; 7. Bennett on Kant's Analytic ; 8. Does Knowledge have Foundations? ; 9. Knowledge and Truth ; 10. Scruton and Wright on Anti-Realism ; 11. Perception and its Objects ; 12. Liberty and Necessity ; 13. Sensibility, Understanding, and the Doctrine of Synthesis ; 14. Two Conceptions of Philosophy ; 15. Review of Paul Grice, Studies in the Way of Words ; 16. Knowing from Words ; 17. What have we learned from Philosophy in the Twentieth Century? ; 18. A Category of Particulars ; 19. Paul Grice ; 20. Why Philosophy? ; 21. Intellectual Autobiography ; 22. A Bit of Intellectual Autobiography ; Index

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Book SynopsisWhat does talk of meaning mean? All thinking consists in natural happenings in the brain. Talk of meaning though, has resisted interpretation in terms of anything that is clearly natural, such as linguistic dispositions. This, Kripke''s Wittgenstein suggests, is because the concept of meaning is normative, on the ''ought'' side of Hume''s divide between is and ought. Allan Gibbard''s previous books Wise Choices, Apt Feelings and Thinking How to Live treated normative discourse as a natural phenomenon, but not as describing the world naturalistically. His theory is a form of expressivism for normative concepts, holding, roughly, that normative statements express states of planning. This new book integrates his expressivism for normative language with a theory of how the meaning of meaning could be normative. The result applies to itself: metaethics expands to address key topics in the philosophy of language, topics which in turn include core parts of metaethics. An upshot is to lessen tTrade ReviewThe book is rich in original ideas and arguments, and the topics canvassed or commented on are significant and bewildering in their number ... serious students of the relevant topics should find its study rewarding, and clearly it is essential reading for anyone working on meaning and normativity. * Teemu Toppinen, Ethics *the most ambitious and innovative attempt to explain meaning since Paul Horwich and Robert Brandom developed their theories in the nineties ... I hope that this splendid book will find a wide audience. It is wonderfully stimulating, opening up vast new territories for investigation. * Christopher S. Hill, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. Normativity and Community ; 3. Kripke's Wittgenstein on Meaning ; 4. Correct Belief ; 5. Horwich on Meaning ; 6. The Normative Meaning Role ; 7. Reference, Truth, and Context ; 8. Meaning and Plans ; 9. Interpreting Interpretation ; 10. Expressivism, Non-Naturalism, and Us ; Appendix 1: The Objects of Belief ; Appendix 2: Schroeder on Expressivism ; References ; Index

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Book SynopsisPart of the "Oxford Readings in Philosophy" series, this volume presents a selection of the major writings in the debate on the nature of meaning and reference which started 100 years ago with Frege's essay "On Sense and Reference". This subject lies at the heart of the philosophy of language.Trade Review`Since the 1960's, the Oxford Readings in Philosophy have provided an essential service to all teachers of the subject. ... in a colourful and attractive new format, but the essential aim of the series remains unchanged: to introduce students, as gently as is realistically possible, to the best work in a given area. ... the volume on time is very wide-ranging Cogito:Winter 1993`Excellent for my second year undergraduate course - right on the topics - and making central papers easily available.' Martin Bell, University of York`This is a valuable collection of articles: the quality is outstanding, and the choice is excellent, for courses on the philosophy of language.' David Bell, University of Sheffield`This is a really excellent book.' Hugh Bredin, Queen's University, Belfast`It is excellent for teaching the subject in a British University' Dr G. McCulloch, University of Nottingham`A very useful anthology of seminal essays in this field.' Stephen P. Thornton, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland`This is an excellent selection of articles.' R. Fellows, University of Bradford`Excellent, nicely priced volume with many of the classic texts.' D.E. Cooper, University of Durham`This is an excellent collection of articles.' Maria Baghramian, University College Dublin`An extremely useful collection on meaning and reference containing classic papers students ought to read.' Dr C. Macdonald, University of Manchester`One of the most useful texts in the series Oxford Readings in Philosophy. It has the most important of the relevant essays.' B.B. Rundle, Trinity College, OxfordTable of ContentsOn sense and reference, Gottlob Frege; letter to Jourdain, Gottlob Frege; descriptions, Bertrand Russell; on referring, P.F. Strawson; mind and verbal dispositions, W.V. Quine; truth and meaning, Donald Davidson; on the sense and reference of a proper name, John McDowell; what does the appeal to use do for the theory of meaning, Michael Dummett; meaning and reference, Hilary Putnam; identity and necessity, Saul Kripke; Putnam's doctrine of natural kind words and Frege's doctrines of sense, reference and extension - can they cohere?, David Wiggins; the causal theory of names, Gareth Evans; Frege's distinction between sense and reference, Michael Dummett; Wittgenstein on following a rule, John McDowell.

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Book SynopsisTowards Non-Being presents an account of the semantics of intentional language--verbs such as ''believes'', ''fears'', ''seeks'', ''imagines''. Graham Priest tackles problems concerning intentional states which are often brushed under the carpet in discussions of intentionality, such as their failure to be closed under deducibility. Priest''s account draws on the work of the late Richard Routley (Sylvan), and proceeds in terms of objects that may be either existent or non-existent, at worlds that may be either possible or impossible. Since Russell, non-existent objects have had a bad press in Western philosophy; Priest mounts a full-scale defence. In the process, he offers an account of both fictional and mathematical objects as non-existent. The book will be of central interest to anyone who is concerned with intentionality in the philosophy of mind or philosophy of language, the metaphysics of existence and identity, the philosophy or fiction, the philosophy of mathematics, or cognitTrade Reviewthere is a good deal inTNB2to interest readers ofTNB1.Of the latter, I once wrote that 'while I disagree with a very great deal of it, this is a stimulating, thought-provoking, and challenging book. This is a turbulent Priest whom we should be glad to have among us'. Ten years later, I see no reason to change a word of that. * Bob Hale, Philosophica Mathematica *Priest has provided a very clear and honest accounting of what has been overlooked--non--existents. His book is clearly written and welcome reading. * Jim Kow, Metapsychology Online Reviews *Table of ContentsI. SEMANTICS FOR INTENTIONALITY; II. IN DEFENCE OF NON-BEING; III. IMPOSSIBLE WORLDS AND (OTHER) NON-EXISTENT OBJECTS; IV: ET CETERA

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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