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Full Idea
Whatever else it embraces, a theory of meaning must include an account of truth - a statement of the conditions under which an arbitrary sentence of the language is true.
Gist of Idea
A minimum requirement for a theory of meaning is that it include an account of truth
Source
Donald Davidson (Reality without Reference [1977], p.132)
Book Ref
'Reference, Truth and Reality', ed/tr. Platts,Mark [RKP 1980], p.132
A Reaction
It is a moot point whether we can define meaning if we assume truth, or if we can define truth by assuming meaning. Tarski seems to presuppose meaning when he defines truth (Idea 2345). I like Davidson's taking of truth as basic.
Related Idea
Idea 2345 Semantic notions do not occur in Tarski's definitions, but assessing their correctness involves translation [Putnam]
| 6387 | A minimum requirement for a theory of meaning is that it include an account of truth [Davidson] |
| 6388 | Is reference the key place where language and the world meet? [Davidson] |
| 6389 | To explain the reference of a name, you must explain its sentence-role, so reference can't be defined nonlinguistically [Davidson] |
| 6390 | With a holistic approach, we can give up reference in empirical theories of language [Davidson] |
| 6391 | A theory of truth tells us how communication by language is possible [Davidson] |