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Single Idea 5831
[filed under theme 2. Reason / D. Definition / 1. Definitions
]
Full Idea
Perhaps the modern view is best expressed as saying that "water" has no definition at all, at least in the traditional sense, and is a proper name of a specific substance.
Gist of Idea
The new view is that "water" is a name, and has no definition
Source
Stephen P. Schwartz (Intro to Naming,Necessity and Natural Kinds [1977], §III)
Book Ref
'Naming, Necessity, and Natural Kinds', ed/tr. Schwartz,Stephen P. [Cornell 1979], p.30
A Reaction
This assumes that proper names have no definitions, though I am not clear how we can grasp the name 'Aristotle' without some association of properties (human, for example) to go with it. We need a definition of 'definition'.
The
19 ideas
with the same theme
[specifying one word by means of others]:
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10953
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The parts of a definition are isomorphic to the parts of the entity
[Aristotle]
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10957
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The material element may be essential to a definition
[Aristotle]
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10960
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If we define 'man' as 'two-footed animal', why does that make man a unity?
[Aristotle]
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12291
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There can't be one definition of two things, or two definitions of the same thing
[Aristotle]
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12292
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Definitions are easily destroyed, since they can contain very many assertions
[Aristotle]
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19426
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'Nominal' definitions just list distinguishing characteristics
[Leibniz]
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15927
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Definition just needs negation, known variables, conjunction, disjunction, substitution and quantification
[Weyl, by Lavine]
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19179
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For a definition we need the words or concepts used, the rules, and the structure of the language
[Tarski]
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1623
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Definition rests on synonymy, rather than explaining it
[Quine]
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15227
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Logically, definitions have a subject, and a set of necessary predicates
[Harré/Madden]
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5831
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The new view is that "water" is a name, and has no definition
[Schwartz,SP]
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15457
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Interdefinition is useless by itself, but if we grasp one separately, we have them both
[Lewis]
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6052
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Definitions identify two concepts, so they presuppose identity
[McGinn]
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11215
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Notable definitions have been of piety (Plato), God (Anselm), number (Frege), and truth (Tarski)
[Gupta]
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11223
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Definitions usually have a term, a 'definiendum' containing the term, and a defining 'definiens'
[Gupta]
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23744
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Defining a set of things by paradigms doesn't pin them down enough
[Smith,M]
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14100
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Figuring in the definition of a thing doesn't make it a part of that thing
[Rosen]
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11257
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The Pythagoreans were the first to offer definitions
[Politis, by Politis]
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20389
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A definition of a thing gives all the requirements which add up to a guarantee of it
[Davies,S]
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