Complex Demonstratives Qua Singular Terms

Author: Corazza E.

Source: Erkenntnis, Volume 59, Number 2, September 2003 , pp. 263-283(21)

Publisher: Springer

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Abstract:

In a recent book, Jeffrey King (King 2001) argues that complex demonstratives, i.e., noun phrases of the form `this/that F', are not singular terms. As such, they are not devices of direct reference contributing the referent to the proposition expressed. In this essay I challenge King's position and show how a direct reference view can handle the data he proposes in favor of the quantificational account. I argue that when a complex demonstrative cannot be interpreted as a singular term, it is best understood as a case of deferred reference – in which case it should be viewed as an anaphora inheriting its value from a quantified term – or as an emphatic description.

Language: English

Document Type: Research article

Affiliations: 1: Department of Philosophy The University of Nottingham University Park Nottingham, NG9 2EJ UK E-mail: eros.corazza@nottingham.ac.uk

Publication date: 2003-09-01