This is why he posited thinking about thinking, as the most virtuous, divine activity — Metaphysician Undercover
The association in the mind between the word “tree” and the thing, trees. — Noah Te Stroete
And then there is the question in the OP: what exactly is the external thing? — Pattern-chaser
shared meaning requires a plurality of language users.
— creativesoul
...but here, how does shared meaning differ from meaning? A meaning that has not been shared... a meaning that cannot be shared?
So, what is it that is being shared between language users? To answer "meaning" is not at all helpful nor informative.
— creativesoul
One thing that's important to clarify re "shared meaning" is whether someone is positing (1) one "thing" that's multiply present--a la the traditional concept of universals, where there's a solitary universal that somehow obtains in multiple things, (2) multiple "things" that are somehow the same (somehow identical despite not being numerically identical), or simply (3) something that can be observed by multiple people--sharing in the "show and tell" sense.
— Terrapin Station
Not like that... — Banno
What would meaning that cannot be shared amount to? — creativesoul
Well, Noah I'm not sure how long you've been interested in philosophy, but this particular topic is not at all one that is simple to understand. — creativesoul
Are you disagreeing that meaning is shared? — creativesoul
Refer to the last book of "Nichomachean Ethics". The entire NE is an extremely good read, which all human beings would benefit from reading. The highest pleasure, most perfect happiness is found in contemplation. Also you'll find the same principle in Metaphysics Bk.12 Ch.7. Here, the principle looses credibility as he uses this idea to support his notion of eternal circular motion, as unmoved mover, which is really untenable. The act of thinking is in contact with itself, as the best thing to think about. And so the act of thinking, and the object of thought become one and the same in God, so that God is always in this most virtuous condition, which human beings are only sometimes in. In God, the act of thinking and possession of the object of thinking, are one and the same thing, in this eternal circular motion. His mistake is that he has taken what he has determined as the highest human activity, contemplation, and tried to describe God's activity based on this description of the highest human activity. But hat's a huge gap he jumps across without providing a bridge to support the assumed relation, as human beings are temporal, mortal beings, while God is non-temporal, eternal.Interesting... He did?
Have a link? — creativesoul
Well if you don't understand, you're not sharing, and you're not playing the game properly. But sharing a pizza does not require sharing a stomach, we each have some. And likewise we can share thoughts, rules, meanings, in separate minds. Let's not make it a problem because it isn't one. Maybe your slice of pizza is bigger and has more salami, maybe your understanding is sharper. Still, we share... — unenlightened
You've named some different kinds of meaning. Would you elaborate a bit upon universal and unknown meaning? — creativesoul
I think I might agree with you that the meaning OF “tree” is the relationship of how the word is used with the physical object it refers to — Noah Te Stroete
At least that’s what I got out of your use of the term “use”. — Noah Te Stroete
1) Universal (innate or inherent) if all neurotypical organisms of a particular type possess it. Human examples would include expressions of basic emotion (Plutchik, 1980) and morality (Brown, 1991). So, universal meaning is shared among a species by means of genetic predisposition (nature) rather than communication. — Galuchat
Anyway......you asked, I answered. Critique as you see fit. — Mww
Some groundwork: All understanding, both pure from mere thought with no real object, or empirical from perception which requires real objects... — Mww
Is the computer "doing meaning"? In other words, does "tree" mean something to the computer? — Terrapin Station
which involves remembering knowledge (semantic information) — Galuchat
We humans are equipped with only one cognitive system, whatever its description. — Mww
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