Donald Davidson Truth, Language, And History
Book details
- Title
- Donald Davidson Truth, Language, And History
- Author
- Donald Davidson
- Publication year listed
- 1900
- Format
- Public domain eBook
- Reading access
- Free online reader; no registration required
- Source record
- View on Archive.org
About this book
Donald Davidson Truth, Language, And History
Author: Donald Davidson
Year: 1900
This collection of essays by Donald Davidson, titled Truth, Language, and History, explores the complex relationships between the mind, language, and the world . The volume is organized into four main sections: Truth, Language, Anomalous Monism, and Historical Thoughts . 1. The Concept of Truth Davidson argues that truth has been misunderstood by both those who try to define it grandly (like correspondence or coherence theorists) and those who try to dismiss it as trivial (deflationists) . Indefinability: Truth is one of our most elementary concepts and cannot be reduced to more basic terms like "warranted assertability" or "use" . Objectivity: He maintains that truth is objective—it depends on how the world is, not on what we believe or what is useful to believe . Empirical Connection: To understand truth, we must look at its empirical connections to human behavior, such as how we interpret the speech and beliefs of others by assigning truth conditions to their utterances . 2. Language and Communication In this section, Davidson challenges traditional views on what it means to "know a language" . Beyond Rules: He argues that successful communication does not require speaker and he