Posted by alexandra_k on August 17, 2005, at 17:25:19
In reply to Re: the meaning of meaning, posted by alexandra_k on August 16, 2005, at 18:11:26
Okay so... Just in case Zeugma or someone hits the boards... I have many confusions around meaning... Philosophy of language is really very hard (IMO).
That is just by way of saying... That I don't really know what I'm talking about so if it is hard to understand that may well be because it is ununderstandable, incoherant, or just plain wrong...
Two dimensional modal semantics / logic in particular...
The two dimensions aren't 'dennotation and connotation'. My mistake - the two dimensions are extension / reference and intension (standard meaning).
So for example...
Take a sentance 'There is water on twin earth'.
Lets specify twin earth (there are a variety of thought experiments that specify a variety of conditions on twin earth).On my version of twin earth there is no H2O. There is watery stuff that fills the lakes etc, but that stuff is xyz and let us grant that H2O does not = xyz.
Now lets evaluate the utterance 'there is water on twin earth' by going modal (considering another possible world):
With respect to extension the utterance is false: there is no h2O on twin earth.
With respect to intension the utterance is true: there is watery stuff that fills the lakes etc.You can do all kinds of funny stuff with indexicals by evaluating their truth / falsity in modal contexts (across other possible worlds):
'I am here now'.
This statement is necessarily true. It is true in all possible worlds. For anyone who speaks the utterance the utterance cannot be false.
What is curious about the expression is that while we want to say that it has a standard meaning it is also true that there is no standard dennotation.
'I' is indexical because what the term dennotes changes as a function of context of utterance. If I say 'I' I dennote a_k, if you say 'I' you dennote Damos etc.
'Here' is indexical because where the term dennotes changes as a function of context of utterance. If I say 'here' it refers to where I am right now.
And 'Now' is the same...
Indexicals have a standard meaning 'I' refers to whoever is speaking now etc... But the referent changes as a function from intension to context.
'I am here now' is necessarily true. It is true for all speakers at all times at all places across all possible worlds.
But the referents (extensions) vary across different possible worlds.
It is necessarily true because it doesn't say anything in particular about the world at all.
It is true that I am here now.
But it is also possible that I be somewhere else now.Argh.
I'm all confused already...
I'm just talking really...
;-)
poster:alexandra_k
thread:541758
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/write/20050807/msgs/543120.html