Ideas from 'An Inquiry into Meaning and Truth' by Bertrand Russell [1940], by Theme Structure

[found in 'An Inquiry into Meaning and Truth' by Russell,Bertrand [Penguin 1967,-]].

green numbers give full details    |     back to texts     |     expand these ideas


3. Truth / A. Truth Problems / 7. Falsehood
Asserting not-p is saying p is false
4. Formal Logic / C. Predicate Calculus PC / 2. Tools of Predicate Calculus / e. Existential quantifier ∃
There are four experiences that lead us to talk of 'some' things
5. Theory of Logic / A. Overview of Logic / 4. Pure Logic
The physical world doesn't need logic, but the mental world does
5. Theory of Logic / D. Assumptions for Logic / 2. Excluded Middle
Questions wouldn't lead anywhere without the law of excluded middle
5. Theory of Logic / E. Structures of Logic / 2. Logical Connectives / e. or
A disjunction expresses indecision
'Or' expresses hesitation, in a dog at a crossroads, or birds risking grabbing crumbs
'Or' expresses a mental state, not something about the world
Maybe the 'or' used to describe mental states is not the 'or' of logic
Disjunction may also arise in practice if there is imperfect memory.
5. Theory of Logic / L. Paradox / 6. Paradoxes in Language / c. Grelling's paradox
A 'heterological' predicate can't be predicated of itself; so is 'heterological' heterological? Yes=no!
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 1. Knowledge
All our knowledge (if verbal) is general, because all sentences contain general words
11. Knowledge Aims / C. Knowing Reality / 1. Perceptual Realism / a. Naïve realism
Naïve realism leads to physics, but physics then shows that naïve realism is false
12. Knowledge Sources / D. Empiricism / 1. Empiricism
For simple words, a single experience can show that they are true
12. Knowledge Sources / D. Empiricism / 5. Empiricism Critique
Perception can't prove universal generalisations, so abandon them, or abandon empiricism?
20. Action / C. Motives for Action / 3. Acting on Reason / b. Intellectualism
A mother cat is paralysed if equidistant between two needy kittens