Two notions of indexicality
-
Hanseung Kim
Abstract
Indexicality has been studied with two different philosophical interests — a semantic interest and an action-theoretic one. The semantic interest is regarding understanding how indexicals refer to what they refer to. The action-theoretic interest is regarding understanding the role that indexicals play in cognitive systems. John Perry's main concern throughout his seminal works is to provide a unified theory that fulfills both interests. That these two interests are distinct, however, is not fully appreciated. Also missing is the argument that they should be treated in one theory. This article shows that Perry's account of indexicality is not satisfactory and suggests a different way in which we should look at the notion of indexicality. The ultimate difficulty underlying Perry's approach, according to my diagnosis, lies in what I call “semanic foundationalism.” For a better understanding of indexicality, it is necessary to abandon semantic foundationalism.
© 2010 Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin/New York
Articles in the same Issue
- Reflexivity and self-augmentation
- Le phénomène interartistique
- Two notions of indexicality
- The highway code in Nigeria: Examples of domestic strategies
- The black box of translation: A glassy essence
- The performative potential of metaphor
- Whiteness matters: What lies in the future?
- Organizing connotations in works of visual art (through the example of works by Giovanni Bellini)
Articles in the same Issue
- Reflexivity and self-augmentation
- Le phénomène interartistique
- Two notions of indexicality
- The highway code in Nigeria: Examples of domestic strategies
- The black box of translation: A glassy essence
- The performative potential of metaphor
- Whiteness matters: What lies in the future?
- Organizing connotations in works of visual art (through the example of works by Giovanni Bellini)
