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Single Idea 16380

[filed under theme 19. Language / D. Propositions / 3. Concrete Propositions ]

Full Idea

The Russellian notion of a proposition is arguably a better candidate for the status of semantic content than the Fregean notion of a thought. For the proposition remains constant from one person to the next.

Gist of Idea

Russellian propositions are better than Fregean thoughts, by being constant through communication

Source

François Recanati (Mental Files [2012], 16.2)

Book Ref

Recanati,François: 'Mental Files' [OUP 2012], p.214

A Reaction

A good point, though I rebel against Russellian propositions because they are too much out in the world, and propositions strike me as features of minds. We need to keep propositions separate from facts.

The 14 ideas with the same theme [propositions as made of real objects]:

21726 In graspable propositions the constituents are real entities of acquaintance [Russell]
21702 In 1918 still believes in nonlinguistic analogues of sentences, but he now calls them 'facts' [Russell, by Quine]
23453 Propositions as objects of judgement don't exist, because we judge several objects, not one [Russell/Whitehead]
19164 If propositions are facts, then false and true propositions are indistinguishable [Davidson on Russell]
22302 Moor bypassed problems of correspondence by saying true propositions ARE facts [Moore,GE, by Potter]
9085 If propositions are concrete they don't have to exist, and so they can't be necessary truths [Plantinga]
16446 Propositions presumably don't exist if the things they refer to don't exist [Stalnaker]
14616 A 'Russellian proposition' is an ordered sequence of individual, properties and relations [Stalnaker]
19216 Propositions (such as 'that dog is barking') only exist if their items exist [Williamson]
17702 Unstructured propositions are sets of possible worlds; structured ones have components [Mares]
19201 Propositions can be 'about' an entity, but that doesn't make the entity a constituent of it [Merricks]
19211 Early Russell says a proposition is identical with its truthmaking state of affairs [Merricks]
21662 Do there exist thoughts which we are incapable of thinking? [Hofweber]
16380 Russellian propositions are better than Fregean thoughts, by being constant through communication [Recanati]