Monographs and proceedings

The book offers a systematic investigation of rigid designation within contemporary philosophy of language, focusing on its metaphysical presuppositions and consequences. Building on the so-called metaphysical turn in semantics initiated by Saul Kripke, the author examines the relationship between linguistic expressions and extra-linguistic entities across possible worlds and times. The main objective is to distinguish different notions of rigid designators and to determine which of them are semantically relevant and which depend on specific metaphysical commitments, especially various forms of essentialism. Special attention is devoted to singular descriptions, proper names, indexicals, and general terms, which are traditionally regarded as rigid designators in the literature. The book argues that rigid designation is not a unified notion and that its different forms vary with respect to their degree of metaphysical neutrality. Whereas the rigidity of proper names and some general terms is grounded in linguistic conventions and the immediacy of reference, the rigidity of descriptions depends on the essential properties of their referents. The final chapters address the possibility of formulating metaphysically neutral notions of rigid designation and explore their implications for the debate between essentialism and anti-essentialism. The book provides a detailed and critical analysis of rigid designation and makes a substantial contribution to a clearer understanding of the relationship between semantics and metaphysics.

Publisher: Infopress

Typ knihy: monography

Vydanie: 1.

Rok vydania: 2006

Miesto vydania: Bratislava

Počet strán: 222

Language: slovenský

rigid designation, rigid designator, reference, philosophy of language, metaphysics, possible worlds, essentialism, proper names, singular descriptions, indexicals

ISBN 80-85402-79-3 (print)