I'm enjoying this thread, — Dawnstorm
I'm enjoying this thread, but am a bit shy to respond because I'm not very familiar with the philosophy of language. — Dawnstorm
That is a very good question.
Pick a word, any word, and present its correct meaning. Let's see where that leads. — Banno
Or perhaps that using it correctly shows that one knows what it means.
When someone goes to a store and asks for five red apples, receives five red apples, and goes on their way, it seems that that person knows how to use the words. Ask such a person what the meaning of "five red apples" is, and they may or may not know how to answer. — creativesoul
Are you making the french press or what?
— creativesoul
Turkish. — Banno
You totally missed the point. Using "five red apples" to acquire five red apples shows that the user knows the correct use/meaning of "five red apples". — creativesoul
Triangle = A three-sided geometric figure — TheMadFool
How is it possible to know whether we're using the word correctly without knowing what the correct meaning is? — TheMadFool
Triangle = A three-sided geometric figure — TheMadFool
At the risk of getting into another "trite" side-track...where are the sides in a love-triangle? — Isaac
Each person represents a point. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. You have your triangle. — TheMadFool
They could do. What necessitates that I imagine this when I use the term to communicate? — Isaac
I don't understand you. You asked where's the triangle and I obliged. — TheMadFool
You answered where the sides could be, I asked where they were. — Isaac
I only have to answer where they could be, right? — TheMadFool
How do we know we are using "A", "Three", "Side", "Geometric" and "Figure" correctly in that definition? So that is incomplete. If you are going to give a complete meaning, you need also to give the meaning of "A", "Three", "Side", "Geometric" and "Figure". — Banno
I'm not sure what you're trying to show here. I'm in no doubt that it is possible to draw three imaginary line between the actors. I'm asking about the necessity of doing so. If two people communicate effectively using the term 'love-triangle' simply on the grounds that there are three people involved, then how is it they've communicated. Are you suggesting that the 'meaning' of a word is some reified thing divorced from that which might be understood during it's use? — Isaac
I'm only showing you what a love-triangle is. Since a triangle is a geometric concept, it's best to do it with pictures and that I've done. — TheMadFool
The entire process will trace back to ostensive definitions. — TheMadFool
How is it possible to know whether we're using the word correctly without knowing what the correct meaning is? — TheMadFool
I didn't ask what it is, I asked where the sides are in my use of the term. I imagine three people, co-involved, on of whom is the subject of my expression "She's involved in a love-triangle". My interlocutor, on hearing this also imagines three people, co-involved one of whom is the subject of the expression he just heard. He may no proceed to ask relevant questions about the nature of this co-involvement, treat each actor (should he meet them) in a manner consistent with them being co-involved, etc... In other words, I've successfully achieved what I wanted to achieve by using the word 'love triangle' without any sides or geometric shapes being involved in the process at all.
Have I misused the word? Has my success been mere accident? If the 'meaning' of the word is 'a geometric shape with three sides', then what's just happened in my successful use of it absent of any of those features? — Isaac
Well, "three people" are three points and the only shape possible with three points is a triangle. — TheMadFool
codification would be inadequate — Banno
Basically, with Gricean non-natural meanings, you need conventions to fix truth values, or else you have just unstructured conflict. — Dawnstorm
Typing "ball pin hammer" into google translates correctly... — creativesoul
So I suppose I am committed to not bending "convention". — Banno
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