PHL313 Philosophy of Language Professor: Craig DeLancey
Office: CC217
Email: delancey@oswego.edu

---

Past Assignments

28 January and following: Here's your first assignment: send me a digital head shot, via email to delancey@oswego.edu. Name the file after yourself. For example, you can name it "JoeSmith.jpg." If you don't have a digital camera or don't know anyone who has one, let me know. Thanks! NOTE: I can't know who the photo is of if you send it from your cellphone without adding some kind of text message! -- it arrives with an ID like 1313125736

Questions: What is Language? How Does it Fit in Natural World?

28 January: homework! Write, over the weekend, a single page (typed, please) answering the question, "what do you believe is the single feature that best distinguishes human language (as a set of practices that humans do) from other language-like behaviors in other (non-human) animals?" Just state the difference, and then defend it as succinctly as you can. The point is for you to struggle with this, so we have something to talk about on Monday. Leave Wikipedia out of it. Have fun with this endeavor: take an hour or two just to think about the question, or to talk it over with someone.

Reference: Definite Descriptions, Proper Names, Natural Kind Terms

February 1: before class, read Frege's paper, "On Sense and Nominatum" (M 5th ed pages 217-229). This is a classic paper; do your best to grasp Frege's main points. If you can spare the time, before class please read the selection from Locke, "On Words." In edition 5 of Martinich this is pages 621-625.

February 8: before class, read Russell's "Descriptions" (M 5th ed. pages 239-245).

18 February: optional, read Strawson "On Referring" and Russell "Mr. Strawson on Referring" (pages 246-264 in our book).

20 February: homework!: for five different names, give for each name one unique identifying description. You should pick an identifying description for yourself (that is, it is for you uniquely identifying of that thing), but with with an eye towards something that might reasonably be shared with others. Here are some simplistic examples:

Elvis = the rock singer who made the song "Jailhous Rock" famous.
George Washington = the first president of the United States of America.
Plato = author of The Republic.

Use Abraham Lincoln as one of the five different names, as we discussed in class.

20 February: read Kripke, selection from Naming and Necessity, pages 290-303 in our book.

29 February: read Putnam, selection from "The Meaning of 'Meaning'", pages 306-313 in our book.

3 March: read Searle, selection from "Proper Names and Intentionality," pages 326-340 in our book. Note that this paper provides a good overview and summary of (one perspective upon) on what we've done so far in this course. It should help you study. Skip section VI if you like; and skip section V's examples 2 and 3 (which we did not discuss).

12 March: take home exam due. Which theory do you think is the better theory of reference? The causal-historical or the description theory? Write a brief paper (6+ page typed pages) that gives your hypothesis about which is better, explains the basic debate between the description theory and the causal historical theory, and in conclusion shows why you think one of the two theories is better. Your goal is to write in a way that the intelligent lay person can understand -- explain the basic terms and concepts. You should give an account of:

• The Russellian version of the descrption theory of names.
• Extension of the Russellian theory to natural kind terms.
• The Searle/cluster revision.
• What problems the description theory solves. (That is, Frege's two problems, and the two additional problems Russell addresses.)
• The causal-historical theory in Kripke's version.
• What problems the c-h theory identifies in the description theory and how it solves them.
• What problems the c-h theory does not solve.
• Searle's response to the c-h theory.
• Your own view on which view is more favorable.

The best way to accomplish these tasks is to use a single clear example for a proper name and another for a natural kind term, and explain how each theory will analyze or explain the reference or meaning of that name and the natural kind term.

Obviously, the task here is to synthesize and to show that you grasp this material well enough to be able to explain it to others. Write in complete sentences, in well constructed paragraphs, with clear and concise arguments. Cite properly. Do not plagiarize. See my analytic philosophy paper format for advice. Remember that the University is requiring that in this course, because it satisfies the writing requirement, I assess your writing also.

Grading Key: I used the following categories to grade the paper; each was out of five points:

A. Writing quality and clarity
B. Structure of the paper and argument
C. Accurate and clear explanation of Russell's description theory
D. Accurate and clear explanation of Searle's cluster theory
E. Accurate and clear explanation of Kripke's causal-historical theory
F. Explanation of the problems that the description theory aims to solve
G. Explanation of how the description theory solves them
H. Problems posed for description theory by the causal-historical theory defenders
I. Searle's response to the c-h theory
J. your view and the cogency of your defense of it

12, 14 March: read "Truth and Meaning" by Donald Davidson in our text pages 114-125. Anyone feeling truly ambitious should read the Frege selection on pages 36-49 and the Tarski selection pages 85-107 (Davidson builds upon both of these). But I'm only requiring the Davidson.

Meaning Theories

31 March, 2 April: read Wittgenstein selection (the first pages of Philosophical Investigations).

Performative Language

4 April: read the Austin selection in your book, "Performantive Utterances," page 136.

7 April: I'm away, alas, for 7 and 9 April classes. But I'd like you to keep thinking about meaning theory while I am in Arizona. Please take the time to do the following short assignment. Decide which theory of meaning you prefer: a truth-based theory (either form) or the use theory. State what each theory (roughly) is. Pick a sentence in English and suggest why you think either offers the best prospects of revealing the meaning of that sentence; suggest also why the other theory of meaning seems less promising to you. You can get together during the class period on April 7th and discuss this if you want to work together on thinking through the question.

9 April: please write up the 7 April homework in a short statement (you should be able to do this with a single page or a little more -- my goal is just to get you to force yourself to articulate the difference between the theories, and apply it in your thoughts). Please hand it in during the class period in the philosophy department office. If the secretary is not in, slide it under my office door. You can tell my office because Kirk is screaming at you, "Where is your paper?"
Here's how I graded this. A. 4 points for having attempted it. B. 0-2 points for the quality of your explanation of the theory of meaning you defend. C. 0-2 points for your explanation of how it might explain the sentence you've chosen. D. 0-2 points for the explanation of why you think the other theory of meaning we considered will fair less well.

14 April: read the Searle selection in your book, "The Structure of Illocutionary Acts," page 146.

Metaphor

16 April: read Davidson's "What Metaphors Mean" in our text pages 473 and following.

21 April: read the Martinich essay on metaphor.

Realism/Anti-Realism and Language

23 April: Quest day.

28 April: read Kripke's "On Rules and Private Language" in our text pages 626 and following.

30 April, 2 May: continuing with Kripkenstein paradox. We'll consider answers which Kripke does not consider. Optional, read Millikan "Truth Rules" pages 639ff in our Martinich volume.

5 May: read the Whorf selection. Discussion of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. Several copiers are available online here and here.

7 May: Quine on the indeterminancy of reference. This is a classic and goes well with the Kripkenstein (in fact, I should have switched the order with the Whorf). In the Martinich volume, read the selection from Quine's Word and Object, called there "Translation and Meaning" (pages 546 and following). Focus on sections 7 and 8, give sections 9-12 a try, and feel free to skip sections 13-16.

9 May: review and summary.

Note: given how compressed things are, with me being away a week, with 3 snow days and one day I was sick, it feels too compressed to fit in a final paper. I'd like to just have a final which would count as much as the midterm. Final grades would be based on the sum of points from all of the tests and homeworks. However, if anyone wants to write a final paper, I'll gladly work with that person and we can do that; and then it will count equally to the two exams. Please just let me know.