This module is designed to introduce you to the advanced study of a philosophical problem. The one you will be engaging with is located within the philosophy of language. Philosophy of language is an important topic within philosophy, as so much of what philosophers study are concepts. The philosophy of language not only takes the study of concepts seriously but also forwards theories about how this should be done. Philosophers, of course, do not agree about how we study our philosophical concepts.
Philosophical problem: Why and how do ‘truth’ and ‘meaning’ become tools for philosophical analysis?
This module
introduces the student to two important concepts in the philosophy of language:
‘truth’ and ‘meaning’. The module’s aim is twofold: 1. To investigate a specific
theory of truth and meaning. This aspect of the module introduces ‘truth’ and
‘meaning’ as philosophical tools –
tools with which to do philosophy
(for this we turn to A. J. Ayer). 2. To investigate examples of where ‘truth’
and ‘meaning’ have been used to analyse other philosophical problems, including
philosophical problems from within African philosophy (for this we turn to G. M.
Kayange)
- Teacher: Carin Robinson
