Gender, Power, and the Norms of Indirect Assertion

Abstract

For the most part, the norms of assertion literature has focused only on what proposition the speaker expresses by a particular assertion, and on what epistemic standing the speaker has with respect to the proposition expressed by the assertion. While some including myself consider extra-propositional content relevant to whether, all things considered, a particular assertion is warranted — such as whether the assertion is polite or prudent — most have taken up Williamson’s project in articulating “simple” norms of assertion that consider such features external to the norm of assertion.