Questions tagged [meaning]
**NOTE: This tag should not be used.** For questions about the nature of meaning, please use "philosophy-of-language" if you want to ask about the meaning of some quote or idea, please use the name of that idea.
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What is meaning if it is not context?
It is often said that "meaning is context".
This is a hollow definition because the context has its own meaning, which is its wider context, and so on until all contexts have been exhausted. ...
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What does “economy of discipline” mean in the following context?
What does "economy of discipline" mean in the following context?
Michel Foucault has argued that the political power generated by
sovereignty is, through the processes of bureaucratization, ...
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1answer
46 views
What is the meaning of this aphorism by Merleau-Ponty
What is the meaning of this aphorism by Merleau-Ponty
We are condemned to meaning, and we cannot do or say anything without
its acquiring a name in history
and is it true?
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82 views
Meaning of copying
I read the definition of the verb "to copy" in various dictionaries.
I also asked the question in a language forum and I was told it's more of a philosophical question.
I would like to know ...
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55 views
Are there any fancy terms for the “supposed meaning” of the text and the “actual meaning” of the text?
I am currently writing a software requirements document. It is supposed to be modified and updated by the software developers. I would like to categorize the possible changes. To do this, I introduce ...
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57 views
“There is always a kind of contempt in the act of speaking” - What does this quote mean?
I saw this quote from Nietzsche in the preface of one of Harold Bloom's Shakespearean Analysis books.
It says:
"That for which we find words is something that is already dead in our
hearts. ...
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1answer
38 views
Just what does closure mean in philosophy?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Causal_closure
What does closure mean? I am not sure what closure means when used in the context of philosophy. I keep seeing the term closure being used in philosophy, ...
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78 views
Negative meaning in Structuralism
I have a hard time understanding the concept of "negative meaning" in linguistic Structuralism (Saussure). Their proposition is that signs don't have meaning by themselfes but only within ...
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154 views
What is the meaning of “epistemic”, “epistemological” and “ontological” in this context?
I was reading The Outer Limits of Reason: What Science, Mathematics, and Logic Cannot Tell Us by Noson S. Yanofsky and in some paragraphs of this books, The writer uses the words "epistemic",...
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69 views
Marcus Aurelius' progression in stoic thought
In what is ascribed to be Verse 18, Book V of Marcus Aurelius' Mediations, Marcus writes:
[1] "Nothing happens to any man which he is not formed by nature to bear."
Alternative ...
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1answer
99 views
Why is reason negative according to Hegel?
Reason is negative and dialectical because it resolves determinations of understanding into nothing; it is positive because it generates the universal and comprehends the particular therein. Hegel, ...
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281 views
What does “logically prior” mean? [closed]
I'll bold a few examples that Google yielded.
Logical Form (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
Frege's leading idea was that propositions have “function-argument” structure. Though for Frege, ...
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1answer
167 views
Are beautiful things difficult?
As you may already know, the dialogue Hippias Major ends with the following asseveration by Socrates:
So, I think, Hippias, that I have been benefited by conversation with both of you, for I think ...
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96 views
How closely is deconstruction tied to the plurality of meaning?
How closely is deconstruction tied to the plurality of meaning?
the instability and plurality of meaning
Derrida on Heidegger:
the break with the horizon of communication as the communication ...
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1answer
306 views
What does “there is something that it is like” in Thomas Nagel's “What Is It Like to Be a Bat?” mean?
I was reading The enigma of human consciousness in ANNALS of the New York Academy of Sciences and this came up:
think it’s very hard to define consciousness in terms of anything more basic than ...
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3k views
Is verificationism dead?
A long time ago, I was taught that logical positivism, though very productive in explicating what it means for one science to reduce to another (e.g. chemistry to physics), died because the ...
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2answers
101 views
Can every thought in the mind called a thing
This is a metaphysical (ontology) question. I'm looking for the appropriate ontological terminology, as 'thing' seems like it is ordinary language.
I know that every entity in the physical world can ...
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2answers
269 views
If I think life has meaning, then does that mean life is not meaningless? [closed]
I see some people say that life/existence is meaningless. However, I assign existence with meaning, therefore it's NOT meaningless. Yes?
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1answer
83 views
What is the meaning of “Philistine utilitarianism”?
I was wondering what is the meaning of "Philistine utilitarianism"? I saw this in a couple of articles and I wanna know that Is it a term or Should I read it literally; that is, anti-intellectual ...
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110 views
Is this quote flawed when it comes to not understanding racism and also not admiring it? [closed]
Can anyone please help me with how to respond to someone who has told me that he doesn't understand racism and can't admire it either? Is it possible that someone doesn't get what racism is?
Here is ...
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162 views
What is the meaning of this Chuang-Tzu quote?
What is the meaning of this quote ? Also, what can one take away from this ?
…the wise man looks into space
and does not regard the small as too little,
nor the great as too big,
for he ...
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1answer
242 views
Is all language meaningful?
Wittgenstein claimed that many philosophers misuse language and write nonsense. He later claimed that a private language, one that cannot in principle be understood, is impossible. Does that suggest ...
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118 views
With infinite language would the meaning of words collapse?
If our language was infinite to describe an infinite amount of objects, would it even be possible for any of those concepts to mean anything? My intuition is that the meaning of a word is given to it ...
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1answer
68 views
Under what definitions of truth and knowledge (especially Bayesian) are 'definitely knowing' and 'certain' different
Under what definitions of truth and knowledge are 'definitely knowing' and 'certain' different? Apologies if too much of a semantic question, but I think we should agree that we can have a sense of ...
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99 views
Meaning in use and naturalisation of intentionality
What is the relation between pragmatism and intentionality?
Two different enterprises in philosophy seem to be well established and yet contradicting:
Inferential Pragmatism: from Wittgenstein and ...
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4answers
263 views
The myth of the given and externalism
According to Wilfrid Sellars any talk of a given out there should be condemned as a mere myth. Therefore, nothing from the physical world outside can limit our language - the "space of reason", and ...
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131 views
Which philosophers would argue that hard determinism makes life more purposeful than randomness?
It appears to me that randomness could or could not produce something meaningful but either way hard determinism seems a better bet. Is there a writer who explores this territory?
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203 views
How do you talk about unclear or indefinite statements
In logic a statement can be
the assertion that is made by a true or false declarative sentence... a statement is viewed as a truth bearer
However, in everyday speech a statement is
a definite ...
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3answers
161 views
What analytic philosophers were concerned with meaninglessness?
What analytic philosophers were concerned primarily with meaninglessness, and where can I read what they said about it?
I just find the idea interesting, but I want to circumvent existentialism for a ...
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0answers
119 views
In which sense Quine denies that the translated expressions do have a meaning?
Early on Kuhn drew a parallel with Quine's thesis of the indeterminacy of translation (1970a, 202; 1970c, 268). According to the latter, if we are translating one language into another, there are ...
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1answer
181 views
What does it mean to say what happens in your experience is inside your mind in a way in which what happens in your brain is not?
"If what happens in your experience is inside your mind in a way in
which what happens in your brain is not, it looks as though your
experiences and other mental states can't just be physical ...
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2answers
299 views
Philosophical approach for discussing the meaning of many words?
I lack a good background in philosophy and often get stuck while trying to understand it. There is a particular issue that keeps me from understanding or enjoying or appreciating many videos or texts ...
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224 views
Is “quality of life” an in-efficacious measure for a “meaningful life”?
Definitions
Quality of life (QOL) is the general well-being of individuals and societies, outlining negative and positive features of life. It observes life satisfaction, including everything from ...
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530 views
In the joke about math vs. philosophy, why don't philosophy departments need erasers? [closed]
I don't understand the joke (before the era computing) quoted by Peter Flom:
The math department is the 2nd cheapest one to supply in the university: All the[y] need are pencils, paper and erasers. ...
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3answers
197 views
Purposelessness and DNA Propagating
Positivist evolutionary biologists claim that living beings are nothing but byproduct of purposeless random evolution. (For example, say, a flower is just a DNA propagating machine.)
I am especially ...
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4answers
119 views
Can purpose be attributed to events without grounding in agency
As observers we observe events around us. All events have causes, either deterministic causes or non-deterministic ones. As observers however we can additionally attribute purpose (or meaning as in ...
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4answers
250 views
Help to explain the meaning of work beyond the sole purpose of making money
My brother is obsessed with money and I feel like the sole reason he works is to make money,
I think in your work you should aim for goals of higher value ie. not only should you earn money but your ...
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2answers
220 views
What makes our words different than symbols like X?
There is an issue that blurs my head. For instance, lets have a proposition p that says: “X is round”. X is a symbol that we could mark something into. If we say X is an orange fruit, then the ...
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336 views
What is Derrida's différance?
I am very perplexed by the concept of différance. Is it even a concept at all? I've had some sources saying otherwise. How should I interpret this?
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162 views
Does an overridden duty still exist while it is overridden?
I'm an LSAT instructor and I've been stuck on the following LSAT question ever since I first saw it.
This question is in the only freely available LSAT (Section 3, #18). If this question is wrong ...
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88 views
What's the name of the argumentation position / logical fallacy of saying “well prove it doesn't exist”
For e.g someone says they believe in the Flying Spaghetti Monster. When you ask for evidence they reply: "well, prove it doesn't exist!"
Surely it's the prerogative of the believer to provide ...
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1answer
130 views
What is the name of the fallacy when someone conflates a motivation for one of the variables?
Some examples:
"An atheist killed someone. They killed them because they were an atheist."
"A man strangled his wife. He is clearly a misogynist."
As you can see, one variable has been extrapolated ...
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What fallacy infers motivation from mere description?
Here's some example:
"Men dominate women in the majority of fortune top 100 CEO positions"
"Women dominate men in primary school teaching jobs"
Neither the men nor the women are actually purposely ...
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3answers
111 views
What's the term/phrase when someone assumes you take on the diametrically opposed view simply because you negate a position?
What's the term/phrase when someone assumes that you take on the diametrically opposed view simply because you disagree with a position?
For example, I recently posted an article challenging ...
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563 views
What are the relations between externalism (Kripke, Putnam) and holism (Quine) about meaning?
Three points are not clear to me about the relations between semantic externalism (Kripke, Putnam) and holism (Quine):
Is there a way according to which externalism and holism can be held together or ...
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3answers
554 views
Some questions on “context” in Mathematical Logic
Recently I was having a discussion with user21820 in this chatroom. There very naively (in the sense that I didn't choose carefully each word of my following statement) I expressed the opinion that,
...
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What is the difference between responsibility and commitment?
I was recently looking at philosophy of responsibility, and something interesting which I had not thought about before, was that the way we use "responsibility" includes things not necessarily caused ...
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246 views
Can there be a sufficient account of meaning without an account of intentionality?
Much has been said in recent philosophy in criticism of representationalist theories of meaning. The idea is that any representation can represent what it will only in a prior, limiting context. ...
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157 views
Would a pragmatist allow that meaning is representational of things in its use?
Pragmatism contends that use should be stressed when talking about the meaning of words before 'representation'.
But what if we were to look at signification/representation as a sort of activity?
If ...
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1answer
97 views
How are you intended to interpret x.R and x.S in Davidson “Truth and Meaning”?
I'm entirely unfamiliar with the syntax and corresponding semantics Davidson uses for the four equations at the beginning of Truth and Meaning. He states that the following sentences are supposed to ...
