Why Does Language Matter To Philosophy

Many people find themselves dissatisfied with recent linguistic philosophy, and yet know that language has always mattered deeply to philosophy and must in some sense continue to do so. Ian Hacking considers here some dozen case studies in the history of philosophy to show the different ways in which language has been important, and the consequences for the development of the subject. There are chapters on, among others, Hobbes, Berkeley, Russell, Ayer, Wittgenstein, Chomsky, Feyerabend and Davidson. Dr Hacking ends by speculating about the directions in which philosophy and the study of language seem likely to go. The book will provide students with a stimulating, broad survey of problems in the theory of meaning and the development of philosophy, particularly in this century. The topics treated in the philosophy of language are among the central, current concerns of philosophers, and the historical framework makes it possible to introduce concretely and intelligibly all the main theoretical issues.

Wilhelm von Humboldt’s writings on language are a mixture of philosophical theorizing about mind and language on the one hand, and on the other hand, specialized studies of the most detailed sort of both the classical languages and languages which only in Humboldt’s day were becoming known to European scholars, such as Sanskrit, Chinese, and native north and south American languages. This book endeavors to show that Humboldt’s work on language is a coherent system of thought; to recapture and expose the systematic structure of assumption, hypothesis, argument and conclusion; and to assign many of the specific themes in his writing to a place within this structure.

The series, founded in 1970, publishes works which either combine studies in the history of philosophy with a systematic approach or bring together systematic studies with reconstructions from the history of philosophy. Monographs are published in English as well as in German. The founding editors are Erhard Scheibe (editor until 1991), Günther Patzig (until 1999) and Wolfgang Wieland (until 2003). From 1990 to 2007, the series had been co-edited by Jürgen Mittelstraß.

Science and the Quest for Reality is an interdisciplinary anthology that situates contemporary science within its complex philosophical, historical, and sociological contexts. The anthology is divided between, firstly, characterizing science as an intellectual activity and, secondly, defining its social role. The philosophical and historical vicissitudes of science's truth claims has raised profound questions concerning the role of science in society beyond its technological innovations. The deeper philosophical issues thus complement the critical inquiry concerning the broader social and ethical influence of contemporary science. In the tradition of the 'Main Trends of the Modern World' series, this volume includes both classical and contemporary works on the subject.

When Discovering Modernism was first published, it shed new and welcome light on the birth of Modernism. This reissue of Menand's classic intellectual history of T.S. Eliot and the singular role he played in the rise of literary modernism features an updated Afterword by the author, as well as a detailed critical appraisal of the progression of Eliot's career as a poet and critic. The new Afterword was adapted from Menand's critically lauded essay on Eliot in The Cambridge History of Literary Criticism, Volume Seven: Modernism and the New Criticism. Menand shows how Eliot's early views on literary value and authenticity, and his later repudiation of those views, reflect the profound changes regarding the understanding of literature and its significance that occurred in the early part of the twentieth century. It will prove an eye-opening study for readers with an interest in the writings of T.S. Eliot and other luminaries of the Modernist era.

A great deal of attention has been devoted to risk research. Sociologists in general have limited themselves to varying recognitions of a society at risk and have traced out the paths to disaster. The detailed research has yet to be undertaken. In Risk, now available in paperback, Niklas Luhmann develops a theoretical program for such research. His premise is that the concept of risk projects essential aspects of our description of the future onto the present. Risk is conceived as the possibility of triggering unexpected, unlikely, and detrimental consequences by means of a decision attributable to a decision maker.

Note on references to the works of Thomas Reid 5 SECTION 1 - Perception Yves Michaud (University of Paris, France) 9 'Reid's Attack on the Theory of Ideas' William P. Alston (Syracuse University, U. S. A. ) 35 'Reid on Perception and Conception' Vere Chappell (University of Massachusetts, U. S. A. ) 49 'The Theory of Sensations' Norton Nelkin (University of New Orleans, U. S. A. ) 65 'Reid's View of Sensations Vindicated' A. E. Pitson (University of Stirling, Scotland) 79 'Sensation, Perception and Reid's Realism' Aaron Ben-Zeev (University of Haifa, Israel) 91 'Reid's Opposition to the Theory of Ideas' Michel Malherbe (University of Nantes, France) 103 'Thomas Reid on the Five Senses' SECTION 2 - Knowledge and COlIIOOn Sense Keith Lehrer (University of Arizona, U. S. A. ) 121 'Reid on Evidence and Conception' Dennis Charles Holt (Southeast Missouri State 145 University, U. S. A. ) 'The Defence of Common Sense in Reid and Moore' T. J. Sutton (University of Oxford, England) 159 'The Scottish Kant?' Daniel Schulthess (university of Berne, Switzerland) 193 'Did Reid Hold Coherentist Views?' VI Claudine Engel-Tiercelin (University of Rouen, France) 205 'Reid and Peirce on Belief' C. A. J. Coady (University of Melbourne, Australia) 225 'Reid on Testimony' SECTION 3 - Mind and Action James Somerville (University of Hull, England) 249 'Making out the Signatures: Reid's Account of the Knowledge of Other Minds' R. F.

Ayn Rand chose Leonard Peikoff to be her successor as the spokesman for Objectivism. And in this brilliantly reasoned, thought-provoking work we learn why, as he demonstrates how far America has been detoured from its original path and led down the same road that Germany followed to Nazism. Self-sacrifice, Oriental mysticism, racial "truth," the public good, doing one's duty—these are among the seductive catch-phrases that Leonard Peikoff dissects, examining the kind of philosophy they symbolize, the type of thinking that lured Germany to its doom and that he says is now prevalent in the United States. Here is a frightening look at where America may be heading, a clarion call for all who are concerned about preserving our right to individual freedom.

This edited volume explores the different and seminal ways colours matter to philosophy. Each chapter provides an insightful analysis of one or more cases in which colours raise philosophical problems in different areas and periods of philosophy. This historically informed discussion examines both logical and linguistic aspects, covering such areas as the mind, aesthetics and the foundations of mathematics. The international contributors look at traditional epistemological and metaphysical issues on the subjectivity and objectivity of colours. In addition, they also assess phenomenological problems typical of the continental tradition and contemporary problems in the philosophy of mind. The chapters include coverage of such topics as Newton’s and Goethe’s theory of light and colours, how primary qualities are qualitative and colours are primary, explaining colour phenomenology, and colour in cognition, language and philosophy. "This book beautifully prepares the ground for the next steps in our research on and philosophising about colour" Daniel D. Hutto (University of Wollongong) "It is not an overstatement to say that How Colours to Philosophy is a ground breaking publication" Mazviita Chirimuuta (University of Pittsburgh) "Anyone interested in philosophical issues about color will find it highly stimulating." Martine Nida-Rümelin (Université de Fribourg) "The high quality papers included in this anthology succeed admirably in enriching current philosophical thinking about colour” Erik Myin (University of Antwerp) “This is certainly the most complete collection of philosophical essays on colours ever published” André Leclerc (University of Brasília) “All in all this collections represents a new milestone in the ongoing philosophical debate on colours and colour expressions” Ingolf Max (University of Leipzig)

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Society in v. 1-11, 1925-34. After 1934 they appear in Its Bulletin.

In Realism and the Drama of Reference, Meili Steele brings the problem of reference--how language discloses the world--into contemporary critical debates about representation. He explores the potential of reference in the work of three authors in the realistic tradition: Balzac, Flaubert, and James. By defining realism in terms of linguistic practices instead of representational accuracy, this study liberates reference from traditional realist concerns with the empirical universe. Realism thus becomes only one kind of referential practice. The analysis takes up one text by each author--Balzac's Les Illusions perdues, Flaubert's L'Education sentimentale, and James's The Golden Bowl--and considers each with regard to four problems of the realistic novel: the creation of physical and cultural space; the speech of the characters and the relationship of their speech to what the text suggests knowledge to be; the narrator's authority and his interventions; and the representation of the protagonist's experience. By mapping the representational strategies of these three major authors in the history of the novel, this study calls for a reconsideration of the ways in which all novels represent their worlds.

In this book: 'Philosophy is like fish: best presented without too much adornment; hard to get just right and easy to ruin.' What's the point of it all? In Philosophy: All That Matters, bestselling philosopher Julian Baggini shows how abstract ideas feed into the most important existential questions of all. He tells the story of Philosophy, bringing together and interlinking all its different areas, to create what is perhaps the first non-historical narrative of the subject -- one that takes you right to its heart. It places philosophy firmly at the centre of what makes us human. From ethics and metaphysics, to the philosophy of science and religion, Baggini explains what makes us different to other species, why philosophy lies at the heart of that difference, and why that matters. This accessible and readable book will appeal to both students and general readers, giving a fascinating taste of philosophy -- and what matters most within it. The All That Matters series: All That Matters books: All books in the All That Matters series are written by world experts in their subject field. These experts work to distil a topic and get right to its heart, making the book accessible for both students and general readers. Each compelling book contains new and interesting perspectives and tells stories that matter. The Author: 'one of our most lucid and accessible popularisers of philosophy' Julian Baggini is a philosopher, author and journalist, who was recently named on the Observer's list of Britain's top public intellectuals. His doctorate was from University College London on the philosophy of personal identity, and his books have been published globally and translated into twelve languages. Baggini is widely regarded as one of our most lucid and accessible popularisers of philosophy. His work appears regularly in the Guardian, Prospect and the New Humanist, and he founder The Philosophers Magazine. Julian has also appeared as a character in an Alexander McCall Smith novel, and been the subject of a question in University Challenge. Keep up with Julian Baggini on his website or follow his Twitter account @microphilosophy . Other books in the All That Matters series: All That Matters - Interesting introductions to important issues Books on the following subjects are available from the All That Matters series: Muhammad, Water, Political Philosophy, Sustainability, God, Intelligence, Love, Russian Revolution, War, and Creativity. Philosophy - understand philosophy - story of philosophy - existential questions - abstract - the human mind - moral philosophy - ethics - metaphysics - science - religion - accessible - pocket sized - All That Matters - world expert - students - general interest - an introduction to philosophy - ideas - e-book - what is philosophy - knowledge - Plato - Hegel - Descartes

In this detailed study, Christopher Norris defends the kinds of arguments advanced by the early realist, Hilary Putnam. Norris makes a point of placing Putnam's work in a wider philosophical context, and relating it to various current debates in epistemology and philosophy of science. Much like Putnam, Norris is willing to take full account of opposed viewpoints while maintaining a vigorously argued commitment to the values of debate and enquiry.

A twenty-one volume encyclopedia with 32,000 entries and more than 16,000 illustrations.

This volume is a comprehensive collection of critical essays on The Taming of the Shrew, and includes extensive discussions of the play's various printed versions and its theatrical productions. Aspinall has included only those essays that offer the most influential and controversial arguments surrounding the play. The issues discussed include gender, authority, female autonomy and unruliness, courtship and marriage, language and speech, and performance and theatricality.