Philosophy of Language (PP0074)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : PPL-3-POLANG-PH

The idea that the meaning of a declarative sentence is given by stating its truth-conditions is a very influential one. On this view, we understand what a sentence means when we know what the world would have to be like for that sentence to be true. The idea is usually traced back to Frege and the early Wittgenstein, and in the first part of the course we chart its development, and that of modern philosophy of language, from the early part of the 20th century to the late 1970s. In addition to the key notion of truth-conditions, we shall critically discuss other important notions in the theory of meaning, such as the sense/reference distinction introduced by Frege and the principle of compositionality that supposedly explains our ability to understand novel sentences. The second part of the course takes the discussion forward from the 1980s until the present day to examine the main contextualist challenges to truth-conditional semantics, including topics such as vagueness and the apparently all-pervasive context-sensitivity of most natural language expressions. Contextualism itself is tested for coherence and finally the issue of relativism about truth is considered.

Entry Requirements

? Pre-requisites : Philosophy 2A (PP0033) or Philosophy 2B (PP0034)

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Philosophy, (School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, Schedule I)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 3rd year

? Delivery Period : Semester 2 (Blocks 3-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 12 weeks

First Class Information

Date	Start	End	Room	Area	Additional Information
13/01/2009	16:10	18:00	Room G.06, Dugald Stewart Building	Central

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Tuesday	16:10	18:00	Central

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

The coursework involves close and critical analysis of various historical and current views on central issues in the philosophy of language. Students are asked to read, critically assess and discuss some of the most important texts in these fields. Students are encouraged to develop their skills in individual research through the writing of essays, and to develop their critical, analytic and communication skills through informal discussion and possibly oral presentation in class.

Assessment Information

Assessment will be by 2-hour examination in the June diet. Senior Honours students may opt to write a long essay (approximately 5000 words) in lieu of the final exam.