Single Idea 9010

[catalogued under 19. Language / D. Propositions / 6. Propositions Critique]

Full Idea

Why not just talk of sentences and equivalence and let the propositions go? Propositions have been projected as shadows of sentences, but at best they will give us nothing the sentences will not give.

Gist of Idea

We can abandon propositions, and just talk of sentences and equivalence

Source

Willard Quine (Philosophy of Logic [1970], Ch.1)

Book Reference

Quine,Willard: 'Philosophy of Logic' [Prentice-Hall 1970], p.10


A Reaction

I don't understand how you decide that two sentences are equivalent. 'There's someone in that wood'; 'yes, there's a person amongst those trees'. Identical truth-conditions. We can formulate a non-linguistic fact about those truth-conditions.