philosophy of language
University of Edinburgh :: PHIL10005
Course description:
The philosophy of language made significant advances in the early twentieth century – this era has come to be known as the "lingusitic turn" in philosophy. This course will cover some of these key philosophical developments concerning the form, content, and uses of languages.
Lecturer: Brian Rabern
Office: 8.08, 40 George Square, University of Edinburgh
Office hours: Tues 11-12 and by appointment
Course secretary: philinfo@ed.ac.uk
Email: brian.rabern[at]ed.ac.uk
Core Reading:
- The Frege Reader (1997), Blackwell, Beaney, M. (eds.).
- 'On Denoting', Russell (1905), Mind 14 (56):479-493.
- Philosophical Investigations, Wittgenstein (1953), Blackwell.
| Week | Topic | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Logicism and the linguistic turn | Beaney Intro 1-14; Frege (1879), Begriffsschrift (preface): [Beaney 47-52]; Frege (1884), Foundations of Arithmetic (excerpts): [Beaney, 84-129]; |
| 2 | Function-argument analysis of language | Frege (1891), 'Function and concept': [Beaney 130-148]; Frege's letter to Husserl, May 24, 1891: [Beaney 149-150] |
| 3 | Sense and reference | Frege (1892), 'On sense and reference' [Beaney 151-156]; Potter, chapter 14 |
| 4 | Compositionality and indirect reference | Frege (1892), 'On sense and reference': [Beaney 156-171]; Potter, chapter 15 |
| 5 | Concept and object | Frege (1892), 'Concept and object': [Beaney 181-193]; Potter, chapter 16 |
| 6 | Concept extensions and the contradiction | Frege, 'Grundgestze' [excerpts] [Beaney 194-211]; Potter, chapter 18 and 33 |
| 7 | Denoting phrases | Russell (1905) 'On denoting'; Potter, chapter 34 |
| 8 | Theory of descriptions | Russell (1910) 'Knowledge by acquaintance and knowledge by description', Potter, chapter 38 |
| 9 | Meaning and use | Wittgenstein (1953) Philosophical Investigations, §1-33; SEP, 3.1-3.3 |
| 10 | Language-games | Wittgenstein (1953) Philosophical Investigations, §33-80; SEP, 3.4 |
| 11 | Review and discussion |
Optional Reading:
- The Rise of Analytic Philosophy, 1879-1930, Michael Potter, (2019), Routledge.
- Frege Explained, Joan Weiner, (2004), Open Court.
- Frege, Anthony Kenny, (2000), John Wiley.
- Bertrand Russell: The Spirit of Solitude 1872-1921, Ray Monk, (2016), Free Press.
- Ludwig Wittgenstein: The Duty of Genius, Ray Monk, (1991), Vintage.
- The Routledge Guidebook to Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations, Marie McGinn (2013).
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:
Assessment:
- Midterm essays 1500 (40%)
- End-of-semester essay of 2,500 words (60%)
