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Week Five

Reading: Russell - On Denoting 1. What do you think is the truth value of 'The King Of France is Bald' (NB there is no monarchy in France) 2. Does the phrase 'The King Of France' have a sense and a referent? If it has no referent, how does it get its meaning? 3. Is there a difference in meaning between A) The King Of France is Bald B) Santa is Bald? How would Frege account for the difference? How would Russell? 4. What (if any) is the difference between: 'Scott is the author of Waverly' and 'Scott is Scott'? What would Russell say? What would Frege say? 5. How should we analyse a sentence like 'The King Of France is bald'?
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Week Four

1. Intuitively, how do you feel about contradictions? Most people think they must all be false - how about you? Can you explain why you feel the way you feel? 2. Can you think of any examples of a contradiction which might be true? (If you cant - why is that? If you can - what is your example? How would you defend your position that it might be true?) 3. What is the principle of explosion? Do you think its right? 4. Do you think contradictions have content? 5. Is it irrational to believe a contradiction? If some of your classmates say 'yes' to question 2, what would you say to them? 6. If some contradictions were true, what would that mean for philosophical debate? Would I ever be able to argue against anyone?
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Week Three

1. What is the descriptive theory of names? What are Kripke's objections? 2. How does Evans  characterize  Kripke's Theory? 3. What is the Madagscar example? What is it supposed to show? 4. What is Evan's Causal/Information Centric Account? 5. What is it for an object to be the dominant source of information? Evans says re: dominance "i n the case of persons,, for example,  each man's life presents a skeleton and the dominant source  may be the man who contributed to covering most of it rather  than the man who contributed most of the covering. Detail in a  particular area can be outweighed by spread.Also the believer's  reasons for being interested in the item at all will weigh". What does he mean here?  6. What is it for an object to be a 'source' of information? Is Arthur Conan Doyle the source of my information about Sherlock Holmes? (If he is - does that mean I name Doyle when I utter "Sh
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Week Two

1. What 2 step process does Blanchette claim Frege thinks we can use to demonstrate the ultimate grounds for a body of truths?  2. What does Frege 'reduce' the concept of ordering into? 3.What is it to 'reduce' a concept? 4. What is a stipulative definition, and how does Blanchette claim Frege uses them? 5. How much of a distance is there between B and B* on pg 24? Why does it matter?
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Week One

Reading: Frege, Sense and Reference (to be found in the Geach) Before the session, please consider the below questions. You do not need to write the answers down (though of course you can if that helps you) but please take some time to think about them. 1. What is the distinction between sense and reference? 2. What is the Millian view of what constitutes the meaning of a name? How does this fall foul of the puzzle Frege poses at the start of the paper? Is there any way of saving Millianism from this puzzle? 3. Empty names are names like 'Santa' and 'Sherlock Holmes'. Do they have meaning? In virtue of what? 4. What does Frege mean by differing 'cognitive significance'? 5. Frege thinks senses are public. Do you agree? 6. Are senses descriptions? Why/why not?
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