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22435 | The logician's '→' does not mean the English if-then [Quine] |
Full Idea: The logician drops 'if-then' in favour of '→' without ever entertaining the mistaken idea that they are synonymous. | |
From: Willard Quine (Mr Strawson on Logical Theory [1953], V) | |
A reaction: [Quine uses the older horseshoe symbol] The conditional in English is not well understood, whereas the symbol is unambiguous. A warning to myself, since I have a tendency to translate symbols into English all the time. [p.156 'implies' is worse!] |