Problems in Reconstructing Schopenhauer’s Theory of Meaning: With Reference to His Influence on Wittgenstein

2020 ◽  
pp. 25-45
Author(s):  
Michał Dobrzański
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Meaning

Conclusion

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roy Tzohar
Keyword(s):  
Figurative Language ◽  
Final Part ◽  
Theory Of Meaning

This, the conclusion of this book, draws out those features and themes that are common to the various accounts of metaphor presented in the preceding chapters and examines their possible applications. The text also briefly examines further ways in which these features may be applied to deepen and enrich our understanding of the Buddhist and more generally Indian philosophical engagement with figurative language. As a quick case study, the final part of the discussion explores how the Yogācāra theory of meaning sheds light on the concrete use of distinct figures, focusing on a list of similes prevalent in the school’s literature.

A Yogācāra Buddhist Theory of Metaphor

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roy Tzohar
Keyword(s):  
Figurative Language ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Philosophical Theory ◽  
Theory Of Meaning ◽  
Philosophical School ◽  
Intellectual Context ◽  
Philosophical Texts

This book is about what metaphors mean and do within Buddhist texts. More specifically, it is about the fundamental Buddhist ambivalence toward language, which is seen as obstructive and yet necessary for liberation, as well as the ingenious response to this tension that one Buddhist philosophical school—the early Indian Yogācāra (3rd–6th century CE)—proposed by arguing that all language use is in fact metaphorical (upacāra). Exploring the profound implications of this claim, the book presents the full-fledged Yogācāra theory of meaning—one that is not merely linguistic, but also perceptual.Despite the overwhelming visibility of figurative language in Buddhist philosophical texts, its role and use have received relatively little attention in scholarship to date. This book is the first sustained and systematic attempt to present an indigenous Buddhist philosophical theory of metaphor. By grounding the Yogācāra’s pan-metaphorical claim in its broader intellectual context, both Buddhist and non-Buddhist, the discussion reveals an intense Indian philosophical conversation about metaphor and language that reached across sectarian lines, and it also demonstrates its potential contribution to contemporary philosophical discussions of related topics. The analysis of this theory of metaphor radically reframes the Yogācāra controversy with the Madhyamaka; sheds light on the school’s application of particular metaphors, as well as its unique understanding of experience; and establishes the place of Sthiramati as an original Buddhist thinker of note in his own right, alongside Asaṅga and Vasubandhu.

Events and framing

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul M. Pietroski
Keyword(s):  
Framing Effects ◽  
Theory Of Meaning ◽  
Adverbial Modification ◽  
Plausible Theory

Examples of adverbial modification, as in ‘Alvin chased Theodore gleefully yesterday’, were supposed to illustrate virtues of the Davidsonian conjecture reviewed in chapter four. But it is argued that such examples provide further evidence against the conjecture. A theory of meaning, for an expression-generating procedure that children can acquire, is concerned with how expressions like ‘Alvin chased Theodore’ are understood (not how the expressions are related to the events that occurred). A theory of truth is concerned with how expressions are related to the events that occurred (not how the expressions are understood). If one forces a plausible theory of meaning to also serve as a theory of truth, then ordinary action reports present deep metaphysical puzzles, as opposed to mundane “framing effects” that reveal the representational format that humans use to understand linguistic expressions.

The Structure of Truth

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald Davidson
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Language ◽  
Logical Form ◽  
Historical Document ◽  
Truth Theory ◽  
Ontological Commitments ◽  
Theory Of Meaning ◽  
First Time

Donald Davidson’s 1970 Locke Lectures appear in print for the first time in this volume, accompanied by an introduction highlighting their significance as a snapshot of his evolving views in the philosophy of language and describing their relationship to the work he published during his lifetime. The lectures comprise an invaluable historical document that illuminates how Davidson was thinking about the theory of meaning, the role of a truth theory therein, the ontological commitments of a truth theory, the notion of logical form, and so on, at a pivotal moment in the development of his thought. Unlike Davidson’s previously published work, they are written so as to be presented to an audience as a fully organized and coherent exposition of his program in the philosophy of language. Had these lectures been widely available in the years following 1970, the reception of Davidson’s work, especially in the philosophy of language, might have been very different. Given the systematic nature of the presentation of Davidson’s semantic program in these lectures, it is hoped that they will be of use to those encountering his thought for the first time.

scholarly journals Indexicality, meaning, use

Semiotica ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tadeusz Ciecierski
Keyword(s):  
Speech Acts ◽  
Context Sensitivity ◽  
Schematic Representation ◽  
Contextual Variation ◽  
Theory Of Meaning ◽  
Context Of Use ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractThe article presents two concepts of indexicality. The first, more standard and narrow, identifies indexicality with systematic (meaning controlled) context-sensitivity. The second, broader (derived from the work of Jerzy Pelc), conceives indexicality in terms of the potential variability of the general semiotic characteristics expressions (with respect to the context of use). The text introduces the concept of a pragmatic matrix that serves for a schematic representation of contextual variation. I also recapitulate briefly the views of Jerzy Pelc on the meaning (manner of use) and use of expressions, and briefly indicate its relationship approaches with contemporary debates around contextualism and status of non-sentential speech acts. Finally, the relationship between the broader notion of indexicality and the directival theory of meaning is analyzed.

Russell's Theory of Meaning and Denotation and "On Denoting"

1993 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russell Wahl
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Meaning

Intentionality and the theory of meaning

1966 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 55-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Todd
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Meaning
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