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A Survey of Formal Semantics

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Form and Strategy in Science

Abstract

My purpose in this paper is to present an account of certain of the principal results that have been obtained in the field of formal semantics. These results will be stated in what from the logician’s point of view is an informal way; that is, in stating them there will be little or no use of a precisely formalized language (though we shall of course speak about such languages). These results will, however, be stated as precisely as is possible within a non-formalized language. Taken together, my statements of these results will constitute what I believe to be a representative survey of what has been accomplished within the field of formal semantics.

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References

  1. See Alfred Tarski, ‘The Concept of Truth in Formalized Languages’, and ‘The Establishment of Scientific Semantics’ both in his Logic, Semantics, Metamathematics, Oxford, 1956, pp. 152–278 and 401–408; also ‘The Semantic Conception of Truth and the Foundations of Semantics’, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 4 (1944) 341–376.

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  6. See Alfred Tarski, Logic, Semantics, Metamathematics pp. 247–254.

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  9. Ibid. pp. 104–108.

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  12. Ibid. Chapter VI.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, USA

    Robert Rogers

Authors
  1. Robert Rogers
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Duke University, Durham,N.C, USA

    John R. Gregg

  2. University of London, Middlesex Hospital Medical School, UK

    F. T. C. Harris

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© 1964 D. Reidel Publishing Company/Dordrecht-Holland

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Rogers, R. (1964). A Survey of Formal Semantics. In: Gregg, J.R., Harris, F.T.C. (eds) Form and Strategy in Science. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-3603-0_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-3603-0_10

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-3605-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-010-3603-0

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