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Single Idea 8487

[filed under theme 6. Mathematics / C. Sources of Mathematics / 6. Logicism / a. Early logicism ]

Full Idea

I am of the opinion that arithmetic is a further development of logic, which leads to the requirement that the symbolic language of arithmetic must be expanded into a logical symbolism.

Gist of Idea

Arithmetic is a development of logic, so arithmetical symbolism must expand into logical symbolism

Source

Gottlob Frege (Function and Concept [1891], p.30)

Book Ref

Frege,Gottlob: 'Translations from the Writings of Gottlob Frege', ed/tr. Geach,P/Black,M [Blackwell 1980], p.30


A Reaction

This may the the one key idea at the heart of modern analytic philosophy (even though logicism may be a total mistake!). Logic and arithmetical foundations become the master of ontology, instead of the servant. The jury is out on the whole enterprise.


The 13 ideas from 'Function and Concept'

Frege thought traditional categories had psychological and linguistic impurities [Frege, by Rumfitt]
Frege takes the existence of horses to be part of their concept [Frege, by Sommers]
Frege allows either too few properties (as extensions) or too many (as predicates) [Mellor/Oliver on Frege]
Concepts are the ontological counterparts of predicative expressions [Frege, by George/Velleman]
Unlike objects, concepts are inherently incomplete [Frege, by George/Velleman]
An assertion about the concept 'horse' must indirectly speak of an object [Frege, by Hale]
I may regard a thought about Phosphorus as true, and the same thought about Hesperus as false [Frege]
A concept is a function whose value is always a truth-value [Frege]
Arithmetic is a development of logic, so arithmetical symbolism must expand into logical symbolism [Frege]
The concept 'object' is too simple for analysis; unlike a function, it is an expression with no empty place [Frege]
First-level functions have objects as arguments; second-level functions take functions as arguments [Frege]
The Ontological Argument fallaciously treats existence as a first-level concept [Frege]
Relations are functions with two arguments [Frege]