Names, Descriptions And Existence Claims

Abstract

Designators are used only in language contexts. The sounds by Wittgenstein’s builders were not designators. There is one consequence of this for philosophy which I wish to point out. A study of any subject cannot be divorced from language and the situations in which the subject appears. Abstractions cannot be studied without looking at sentences where the concept is employed and the context which evokes this sentence. One rule that I would suggest consistent with this is in the philosophy of action. In any context there is a ‘right’ description of the action. Permissible descriptions follow rules in language governing how actions are to be described. A description must be responsive to the context which evokes this comment. Unless there is a story being told or a specific question asked, there is really no ‘right’ description. Show more