Single Idea 7065

[catalogued under 7. Existence / D. Theories of Reality / 4. Anti-realism]

Full Idea

Anti-realist philosophers, and those who hope to reduce metaphysics to (or replace it with) the philosophy of language, owe the rest of us an account of the ontology of language.

Clarification

The 'ontology' here concerns whether language itself exists

Gist of Idea

Anti-realists who reduce reality to language must explain the existence of language

Source

John Heil (From an Ontological Point of View [2003], 20.6)

Book Reference

Heil,John: 'From an Ontological Point of View' [OUP 2005], p.249


A Reaction

A nice turning-the-tables question. In all accounts of relativism, x is usually said to be relative to y. You haven't got proper relativism if you haven't relativised both x and y. But relativised them to what? Nietzsche's 'perspectivism' (Idea 4420)?

Related Idea

Idea 4420 There is only 'perspective' seeing and knowing, and so the best objectivity is multiple points of view [Nietzsche]