Abstract
Given the historical breadth and depth of the history of the philosophy of language, in this introduction we suggest many different pathways by which this literature can be explored. We divide these pathways into two: Themes and Traditions. The Themes take up three main topics, questions and clusters of concern: the relations between linguistic expressions, cognition and reality; definitions; and the role of nature versus convention. The Traditions are broadly organized by groups of texts or schools of thought. General characterizations of traditions from the Platonic and Aristotelian traditions through to the Lockean and Germanic traditions of the modern period are given.
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Notes
- 1.
Of course, not all philosophers who have written about the philosophy of language could be included in the Sourcebook due to space constraints.
- 2.
The authors are grateful to Rob Stainton for his constructive advice regarding this Introduction.
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© 2017 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
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Cameron, M., Hill, B. (2017). Introduction. In: Cameron, M., Hill, B., Stainton, R. (eds) Sourcebook in the History of Philosophy of Language. Springer Graduate Texts in Philosophy, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26908-5_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26908-5_1
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