Description
Book SynopsisOriginally published in 1970. Many contemporary philosophers have thought that certain philosophic disputes could be settled by using the concept of meaninglessness. To solve philosophic problems in this way, however, it seemed necessary to provide a reliable criterion for deciding when a particular sentence or statement is meaningless. But devising such a criterion has proved to be very difficult. In fact, in recent years many philosophers have become quite skeptical about the adequacy of the standard criteria of meaninglessness. Some of the more radical skeptics have even argued that the concept of meaninglessness, as it is used by philosophers, is itself defective and would be even if an adequate criterion could be found. Professor Erwin, in a systematic study of the concept of meaninglessness, begins by examining the standard criteria of meaninglessness proposed by philosophers. These criteria include operationalist, verificationist, and type or category criteria. Each of these cri
Table of ContentsIntroduction
Chapter 1. Operationalism
Chapter 2. Verificationism
Chapter 3. The Category Mistake Argument
Chapter 4. Meaningless Statements
Chapter 5. Metaphors and Meanlinglessness
Chapter 6. A Theory of Meaninglessness
Index
