Philosophy of Language Course

Lesson 1 • What Philosophy of Language Studies

Defines the discipline's scope and central questions about meaning, reference, and communication. Positions philosophy of language within broader analytic and continental traditions.

Lesson 2 • Use and Mention Distinction

Clarifies the difference between using an expression and mentioning it as an object. Prevents common logical errors in philosophical argumentation.

Lesson 3 • Syntax, Semantics, and Pragmatics

Distinguishes the three levels of linguistic analysis and their interdependence. Provides the terminological foundation used throughout the course.

Lesson 1 • Russell's Theory of Descriptions

Presents Russell's logical analysis of definite descriptions and their truth conditions. Shows how this dissolves apparent puzzles about non-referring expressions.

Lesson 2 • Frege's Sense and Reference

Analyses Frege's distinction between Sinn and Bedeutung using canonical examples. Establishes why two expressions can share a referent yet differ in cognitive value.

Lesson 3 • Proper Names and Empty Names

Addresses names that lack real-world referents and their semantic status. Connects to debates about fictional and mythological entities.

Lesson 1 • Propositions as Bearers of Truth

Defines propositions and distinguishes them from sentences and utterances. Surveys Russellian, Fregean, and possible-worlds accounts of propositional content.

Lesson 2 • Analyticity and Synonymy

Examines Quine's critique of the analytic-synthetic distinction and its consequences. Connects to debates about meaning holism and the indeterminacy of translation.

Lesson 3 • Truth-Conditional Semantics

Presents the core idea that meaning is given by truth conditions. Introduces Tarski's T-schema and its role in formal semantic theory.

Lesson 1 • Private Language Argument

Examines Wittgenstein's argument that a genuinely private language is impossible. Connects to debates about mental content and the social nature of meaning.

Lesson 2 • Wittgenstein's Picture Theory

Presents the Tractatus view that propositions picture facts in the world. Establishes the early Wittgenstein as a foil for his later philosophy.

Lesson 3 • Language Games and Forms of Life

Analyses Wittgenstein's concept of language games as rule-governed activities embedded in forms of life. Shows how meaning is inseparable from social practice.

Lesson 1 • Grice's Cooperative Principle

Explains Grice's maxims of quantity, quality, relation, and manner. Shows how implicature arises from rational exploitation of conversational norms.

Lesson 2 • Austin's Speech Act Theory

Introduces Austin's distinction among locutionary, illocutionary, and perlocutionary acts. Grounds the analysis of language as action rather than mere description.

Lesson 3 • Indirect Speech Acts and Politeness

Examines how speakers convey meanings beyond literal content through indirection. Connects pragmatic theory to politeness strategies and face-saving behaviour.

Lesson 1 • Two-Dimensional Semantics

Introduces the two-dimensional framework distinguishing primary and secondary intensions. Applies it to resolve puzzles about a priori knowledge and necessary truth.

Lesson 2 • Indexical Expressions

Defines indexicals as expressions whose reference is fixed by features of the context. Surveys canonical examples including personal pronouns and temporal terms.

Lesson 3 • Context Dependence and Relativism

Examines predicates of personal taste and epistemic modals as cases of context-dependent truth. Evaluates contextualist, relativist, and expressivist responses.

Lesson 1 • Modal Logic Basics

Introduces necessity and possibility operators and their semantic interpretation. Provides the logical toolkit needed for possible-worlds analysis.

Lesson 2 • Possible Worlds Semantics

Presents Lewis's and Kripke's accounts of possible worlds and their role in semantics. Evaluates realist vs. ersatz interpretations of possible worlds.

Lesson 3 • Counterfactuals and Conditionals

Analyses the semantics of counterfactual conditionals using similarity among worlds. Connects to causation, explanation, and scientific reasoning.

Lesson 1 • Ambiguity and Semantic Underdetermination

Distinguishes lexical and structural ambiguity from vagueness and context dependence. Examines how underdetermination challenges compositional semantic theories.

Lesson 2 • Theories of Metaphor

Surveys comparison, interaction, and pragmatic theories of metaphorical meaning. Evaluates whether metaphor is a semantic or purely pragmatic phenomenon.

Lesson 3 • Vagueness and Borderline Cases

Examines semantic vagueness, the sorites paradox, and the problem of borderline cases. Surveys epistemic, supervaluationist, and degree-theoretic responses.