Philosophy of Language

Catalog description

This course introduces the student to the philosophy of language: its themes, complexities and problems. Employing a historical approach, the course surveys key philosophers who investigate the meaning, source and structure of language. Typically their primary question investigates various ways that the human person, while immersed within a context, understands language. After a brief investigation of ancient and medieval thinkers, the course focuses on a number of modern and contemporary figures who represent the mainstream discussion of the philosophy of language, including representatives of both analytic and continental traditions.