Theories of truth / edited by Frederick F. Schmitt.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Schmitt, Frederick F., 1951-

Series:

Blackwell readings in philosophy ; 13.

Blackwell readings in philosophy ; 13

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Truth.

Physical Description:

ix, 319 pages ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Malden, MA : Blackwell Publishing, 2004.

Summary:

Philosophers have long debated the nature of truth. The classic and contemporary articles in this collection represent the four most influential theories to emerge from their debates -- correspondence, pragmatist, coherence, and deflationary theories. The book includes reflections on truth by C. S. Peirce, William James, Bertrand Russell, Francis W. Dauer, Alfred Tarski, Hartry Field, Dorothy Grover, Joseph L. Camp, Jr., Nuel D. Belnap, Jr., Philip Kitcher, and Anil Gupta. These contributions are grouped into four sections, each dealing with one major theory, but they also proceed broadly chronologically. In this way, the reader gains both a clear idea of each theory and a sense of how theories of truth have developed over time. Attention is focused particularly on the resurgence of the correspondence theory since the 1970s, and on reactions to the new correspondence theory among contemporary deflationists. The volume opens with a substantial introduction to the theories of truth, aimed at readers with little or no prior knowledge of philosophy.

Contents:

Truth: An Introduction / Frederick F. Schmitt 1

Part I Pragmatist Theories of Truth

1 How to Make Our Ideas Clear / Charles Sanders Peirce 41

2 Pragmatism's Conception of Truth / William James 59

Part II Coherence Theories of Truth

3 On the Nature of Truth / Bertrand Russell 77

4 In Defense of the Coherence Theory of Truth / Francis W. Dauer 93

Part III Correspondence Theories of Truth

5 The Semantic Conception of Truth and the Foundations of Semantics / Alfred Tarski 115

6 Tarski's Theory of Truth / Hartry Field 152

7 Truth and Language-World Connections / Dorothy Grover 180

8 On the Explanatory Role of Correspondence Truth / Philip Kitcher 197

Part IV Deflationary Theories of Truth

9 A Prosentential Theory of Truth / Dorothy L. Grover, Joseph L. Camp, Jr., Nuel D. Belnap, Jr. 219

10 Deflationist Views of Meaning and Content / Hartry Field 253

11 Minimalism / Anil Gupta 295

Truth: A Bibliography / Kevin Kimble, Frederick F. Schmitt 307.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [307]-317) and index.

ISBN:

0631222162

0631222170

OCLC:

51861869