9. The Emergence of Thought

Author: Davidson, Donald

Source: Subjective, Intersubjective, Objective, September 2001 , pp. 123-135(13)

Publisher: Oxford Scholarship Online Monographs

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Abstract:

This chapter is concerned with the cognitive development of the pre-conceptual mental life of an infant through to the psychologically fully equipped mind of a child or adult. Davidson argues that known natural languages do not possess the linguistic potential to describe this development, mainly because our current vocabularies are impotent for the task at hand. Furthermore, Davidson argues, it is not clear what would satisfy the felt need for such a vocabulary.

Keywords: linguistic potential; cognitive development; pre-conceptual mental life; natural languages; emergence of thought

Document Type: Research article

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