This book examines Aristotle's theory of philosophical language in the light of his theory of signification. Although meaning, for Aristotle, is the property of a word whereby it arrests the attention and communicates understanding, Aristotle is not primarily interested in meaning in this general sense but rather in the meaning of nouns and verbs as they are the subjects and predicates of enunciations. Aristotle then in treating language is not interested in constructing a grammar of language. An examination of the De Interpretatione, the Poetics, and the Rhetoric substantiates my view that Aristotle is not interested in grammar.
Author(s): Miriam Therese Larkin
Series: Janua Linguarum. Series Minor 87
Publisher: Mouton
Year: 1971
Language: English
Pages: 113
City: The Hague
Tags: Linguistics; Philosophy; Aristotle
Preface......Page 7
1. Introduction......Page 11
2.1 Introduction......Page 15
2.2 Plato And Language......Page 16
2.3 What Is Language?......Page 20
2.4 The Use Of Language......Page 21
2.5 Meaning Or Signification......Page 23
2.6 Reference......Page 36
2.7 Language: Grammar Or Logic?......Page 37
2.8 Signification Of General Terms......Page 42
2.9 Conclusion......Page 45
3.1 Introduction......Page 47
3.2 The Language Of Proof......Page 51
3.3 Conclusion......Page 78
4.1 Introduction......Page 79
4.2 Aristotle’S Purpose In Metaphysics......Page 82
4.3 The Meanings Of “Being”......Page 84
4.4 The Referent Of “Being”......Page 90
4.5 Conclusion......Page 92
Appendix: The Subject Of Metaphysics......Page 93
5.1 Theory Of Signification......Page 97
5.2 Philosophical Language......Page 100
5.3 A Use Of Language: The Meaning Of “Being”......Page 104
Bibliography......Page 107
Index......Page 111
