Publication details
Teorie vlastních jmen Bertranda Russella
| Title in English | Bertrand Russell's Theory of Proper Names |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2001 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Sborník prací Filozofické fakulty brněnské univerzity |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Philosophy and religion |
| Keywords | Bertrand Russell; proper names; singular terms; philosophical logic |
| Description | The present paper gives a comprehensive explication of Russell's theory of proper names. According to Russell there are some basic categories of names: proper and improper symbols. Only a "logically proper name" (for example "this") belongs to the first one. The status of proper names can be situated somewhere closely to logical proper name. On the other hand, Russell disclosed definite descriptions, i.e., terms which should denote definite individuals by their own form. Incidentally Russell found several kinds of proper names that are also definite descriptions, especially "hidden descriptions", but for some purposes Russell used to convert real proper names (fictive or historical) into definite descriptions. The fact that certain expressions lack denotatum led him to eliminate descriptions and to disclaim their meaningfulness (they are improper symbols). Many ideas of Russell's theory are then criticized (with the contribution of arguments of Strawson, Tichý and Kolář). |