Engages with current views and topics on meaning in language Proposes a novel solution to a thus far unresolved debate Synthesizes philosophical and linguistic tradition with up-to-date research in psychology

Autorentext
Dr Magdalena Sztencel is a Senior Lecturer in Linguistics at York St John University, UK.

Klappentext

This book systematically investigates what follows about meaning in language if current views on the limited, or even redundant, role of linguistic semantics are taken to their radical conclusion. Focusing on conditionals, the book defends a wholly pragmatic, wholly inferential account of meaning one which foregrounds a reasoning subject's individual state of mind. The topics discussed in the book include conceptual content, internalism and externalism, the semantics-pragmatics distinction, meaning holism and explicit versus implicit communication. These topics and the author's analysis of conditionals will allow the reader to engage with some traditional and current research in linguistics, philosophy and psychology.

Inhalt
Introduction.- PART I: Semantics, Pragmatics and Meaning.- Chapter 1. Conceptual Correlates of Words.- Chapter 2. The Locus of Semantics and the Decoding-inferring Distinction.- Chapter 3. Revisiting Holism.- PART II: Conditionals.- Chapter 4. The Meaning of if.- Chapter 5. Holistic and Individualistic Constraints on Interpretation.- Conclusion.