Dummett: Philosophy of Language (Key Contemporary Thinkers) [Hardcover]

Karen Green (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0745622941 | ISBN-13: 978-0745622941 | Publication Date: October 16, 2001 | Edition: 1

Michael Dummett stands out among his generation as the only British philosopher of language to rival in stature the Americans, Davidson and Quine. In conjunction with them he has been responsible for much of the framework within which questions concerning meaning and understanding are raised and answered in the late twentieth-century Anglo-American tradition. Dummett's output has been prolific and highly influential, but not always as accessible as it deserves to be. This book sets out to rectify this situation.

Karen Green offers the first comprehensive introduction to Dummett's philosophy of language, providing an overview and summary of his most important arguments. She argues that Dummett should not be understood as a determined advocate of anti-realism, but that his greatest contribution to the philosophy of language is to have set out the strengths and weaknesses of the three most influential positions within contemporary theory of meaning - realism, as epitomised by Frege, the holism to be found in Wittgenstein, Quine and Davidson and the constructivism which can be extracted from Brouwer. It demonstrates that analytic philosophy as Dummett practices it, is by no means an outmoded approach to thinking about language, but that it is relevant both to cognitive science and to phenomenology.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Karen Green has done more than write a study of Dummett's philosophy of language. She has in effect written a critical history of the treatment of the theory of meaning by leading figures from Frege and Wittgenstein on to the present; and she demonstrates how, in relation to all of them, Dummett has elaborated his own position, acknowledging what they have severally contributed while at the same time avoiding their excesses. She shows how his judiciously selective denial of bivalence generates an "anti-realism" which is perfectly consistent with the realism of common sense.' Sir Peter Strawson, University College, Oxford

'For the student, getting to grips with Michael Dummett's philosophy can be a formidable task. For Dummett's theses are deep and challenging, and his arguments for them are subtle and complex. Karen Green is to be thanked and commended for this lucid and accessible account of the main features of Dummett's system of thought. She explains how Dummett has developed theses from Frege and Wittgenstein, about objectivity, normativity, systematicity, publicity, and the dependence of thought on language. She traces also significant points of contact and contention with Husserl, Brouwer, Quine and Davidson. She explains the anti-realist misgiving that truth cannot be bivalent for a language in which meaning derives from use, and does much to prevent the frequent confusion of anti-realism with subjective idealism or phenomenalism. All in all, this is a remarkable exposition and development of the views of one of the most important philosophers of our age.' Professor Neil Tennant, The Ohio State University

"Overall, this book demonstrates Green's remarkable command of the whole of Dummett's writings...Green's discussion of thhese issues offer a well argued and remarkable cohesive perspective on the great breadth of Dummett's work." David Kilfoyle, Philosophy in Review

From the Back Cover

Michael Dummett stands out among his generation as the only British philosopher of language to rival in stature the Americans, Davidson and Quine. In conjunction with them he has been responsible for much of the framework within which questions concerning meaning and understanding are raised and answered in the late twentieth-century Anglo-American tradition. Dummett's output has been prolific and highly influential, but not always as accessible as it deserves to be. This book sets out to rectify this situation.

Karen Green offers the first comprehensive introduction to Dummett's philosophy of language, providing an overview and summary of his most important arguments. She argues that Dummett should not be understood as a determined advocate of anti-realism, but that his greatest contribution to the philosophy of language is to have set out the strengths and weaknesses of the three most influential positions within contemporary theory of meaning - realism, as epitomized by Frege, the holism to be found in Wittgenstein, Quine and Davidson and the constructivism which can be extracted from Brouwer. It demonstrates that analytic philosophy as Dummett practices it, is by no means an outmoded approach to thinking about language, but that it is relevant both to cognitive science and to phenomenology.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 248 pages
• Publisher: Polity; 1 edition (October 16, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0745622941
• ISBN-13: 978-0745622941
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,514,873 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Readable and sophisticated, September 22, 2007

By 

Sam in New York - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dummett: Philosophy of Language (Key Contemporary Thinkers) (Paperback)

I agree that this is much more readable and sophisticated than much of the "Philosophy Now" series. I also agree that what sets it apart is the attention to context, history, and deeper philosophical motivations. Particularly helpful are the links drawn between Dummett's philosophies of language, of math, and of mind. Also, Green's pedagogical style is crisp and refreshing: she notes possible objections or inconsistencies in passing, so as to show the issues at stake and stimulate our own imaginations, rather than simply laying out a series of alternative positions. An example for other professors to follow!

Since this book is about academic philosophy, I can't imagine it appealing to anyone other than philosophy students. But I would recommend it highly to any undergraduate studying the philosophy of language, who has read a little Frege, Wittgenstein, Quine, and Davidson. If I had read it earlier, it would have saved me some frustration. I feel that it enriched my understanding not only of Dummett but of the whole core of the analytic curriculum.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sympathetic, clearly written introduction, April 10, 2007

By 

Felix Gonzalez (Berkeley, Ca USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dummett: Philosophy of Language (Key Contemporary Thinkers) (Paperback)

Karen Green's entry in the "Key Contemporary Thinkers" series compares very favorably with Bernhard Weiss' volume in Princeton's "Philosophy Now." I've already contrasted their very different styles in my Amazon review of Weiss' book (q.v.), so I will limit myself here to restating my gratitude for Ms. Green's constant willingness to juxtapose Dummett's views with those of other philosophers. I for one find it very helpful, when trying to form an initial impression of a thinker with whom I am unfamiliar, to see his or her work against the backdrop of that of others with whom I am already acquainted. Part of the pleasure I take in reading philosophy is seeing just how, in staking her own particular ground, a thinker in effect extends the available terrain with a previously unimagined combination of stances re specific philosophical questions. None of these positions need itself be original for their assemblage to appear unique and to thus expand thought's range of possibilities (at least as long as there is some adequate threshold of cohesiveness among them). If there is one thing I still find wanting in both Green's and Weiss' expositions is sufficient specification of exactly what a theory of meaning (or a meaning-theory, to hew to Dummett's terminology) will actually consist in. For my taste, this topic is addressed at a frustratingly general and abstract level. (Somehow I suspect that Dummett's own writings will offer me little relief on this account, although I am willing to take the risk and be proven wrong.)