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Single Idea 11144

[filed under theme 18. Thought / D. Concepts / 5. Concepts and Language / a. Concepts and language ]

Full Idea

A private attitude is not intelligible except as an adjustment to the public norms provided by language. It follows that a creature must be a member of speech community if it is to have the concept of belief.

Gist of Idea

Concepts are only possible in a language community

Source

Donald Davidson (Thought and Talk [1975], p.170)

Book Ref

Davidson,Donald: 'Inquiries into Truth and Interpretation (2nd ed)' [OUP 2001], p.170


A Reaction

This obviously draws on Wittgenstein's private language argument, and strikes me as blatantly wrong, because I take higher animals to have concepts without language. Pure vision gives rise to concepts. I don't even think they are necessarily conscious.


The 8 ideas from 'Thought and Talk'

The pattern of sentences held true gives sentences their meaning [Davidson]
An understood sentence can be used for almost anything; it isn't language if it has only one use [Davidson]
Concepts are only possible in a language community [Davidson]
Having a belief involves the possibility of being mistaken [Davidson]
A sentence is held true because of a combination of meaning and belief [Davidson]
The concept of belief can only derive from relationship to a speech community [Davidson]
Thought depends on speech [Davidson]
A creature doesn't think unless it interprets another's speech [Davidson]