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Meaning and Reference in Aristotle's Concept of the Linguistic Sign

Ludovic De Cuypere (UGent) and Klaas Willems (UGent)
(2008) FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE. 13(3-4). p.307-324
Author
Organization
Abstract
To Aristotle, spoken words are symbols, not of objects in the world, but of our mental experiences related to these objects. Presently there are two major strands of interpretation of Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign. First, there is the structuralist account offered by Coseriu (Geschichte der Sprachphilosophie. Von den Anfangen bis Rousseau, 2003 [1969], pp. 65-108) whose interpretation is reminiscent of the Saussurean sign concept. A second interpretation, offered by Lieb (in: Geckeler (Ed.) Logos Semantikos: Studia Linguistica in Honorem Eugenio Coseriu 1921-1981, 1981) and Weidemann (in: Schmitter (Ed.) Geschichte der Sprachtheorie 2. Sprachtheorien der abendlandischen Antike, 1991), says that Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign is similar to the one presented in Ogden and Richard's (The meaning of meaning: A study of the influence of language upon thought and of the science of symbolism, 1970 [1923]) semiotic triangle. This paper starts off with an introductory outline of the so-called physei-thesei discussion which started during presocratic times and culminated in Plato's Cratylus. Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign is to be regarded as a solution to the stalemate position reached in the Cratylus. Next, a discussion is offered of both Coseriu's and Lieb's analysis. We submit that Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign shows features of both Saussure's and Ogden and Richards's sign concept but that it does not exclusively predict one of the two. We argue that Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign is based on three different relations which together evince his teleological as well empiricist point of view: one internal (symbolic) relation and two external relations, i.e. a likeness relation and a relation kata syntheken.
Keywords
Teleology, Semantics, Intentionality, Pathema, kata syntheken, Reference, Meaning, Similarity, Arbitrariness, Triadic sign concept, Aristotle, Plato, Presocratics, HH Lieb, E. Coseriu, Bilateralness, physei vs. thesei, Sign concept, Symbol, Theory of language, Philosophy of language, Historiography of the language sciences

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MLA
De Cuypere, Ludovic, and Klaas Willems. “Meaning and Reference in Aristotle’s Concept of the Linguistic Sign.” FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE, vol. 13, no. 3–4, Springer, 2008, pp. 307–24, doi:10.1007/s10699-008-9134-y.
APA
De Cuypere, L., & Willems, K. (2008). Meaning and Reference in Aristotle’s Concept of the Linguistic Sign. FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE, 13(3–4), 307–324. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-008-9134-y
Chicago author-date
De Cuypere, Ludovic, and Klaas Willems. 2008. “Meaning and Reference in Aristotle’s Concept of the Linguistic Sign.” FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE 13 (3–4): 307–24. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-008-9134-y.
Chicago author-date (all authors)
De Cuypere, Ludovic, and Klaas Willems. 2008. “Meaning and Reference in Aristotle’s Concept of the Linguistic Sign.” FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE 13 (3–4): 307–324. doi:10.1007/s10699-008-9134-y.
Vancouver
1.
De Cuypere L, Willems K. Meaning and Reference in Aristotle’s Concept of the Linguistic Sign. FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE. 2008;13(3–4):307–24.
IEEE
[1]
L. De Cuypere and K. Willems, “Meaning and Reference in Aristotle’s Concept of the Linguistic Sign,” FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE, vol. 13, no. 3–4, pp. 307–324, 2008.
@article{430471,
  abstract     = {{To Aristotle, spoken words are symbols, not of objects in the world, but of our mental experiences related to these objects. Presently there are two major strands of interpretation of Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign. First, there is the structuralist account offered by Coseriu (Geschichte der Sprachphilosophie. Von den Anfangen bis Rousseau, 2003 [1969], pp. 65-108) whose interpretation is reminiscent of the Saussurean sign concept. A second interpretation, offered by Lieb (in: Geckeler (Ed.) Logos Semantikos: Studia Linguistica in Honorem Eugenio Coseriu 1921-1981, 1981) and Weidemann (in: Schmitter (Ed.) Geschichte der Sprachtheorie 2. Sprachtheorien der abendlandischen Antike, 1991), says that Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign is similar to the one presented in Ogden and Richard's (The meaning of meaning: A study of the influence of language upon thought and of the science of symbolism, 1970 [1923]) semiotic triangle. This paper starts off with an introductory outline of the so-called physei-thesei discussion which started during presocratic times and culminated in Plato's Cratylus. Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign is to be regarded as a solution to the stalemate position reached in the Cratylus. Next, a discussion is offered of both Coseriu's and Lieb's analysis. We submit that Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign shows features of both Saussure's and Ogden and Richards's sign concept but that it does not exclusively predict one of the two. We argue that Aristotle's concept of the linguistic sign is based on three different relations which together evince his teleological as well empiricist point of view: one internal (symbolic) relation and two external relations, i.e. a likeness relation and a relation kata syntheken.}},
  author       = {{De Cuypere, Ludovic and Willems, Klaas}},
  issn         = {{1233-1821}},
  journal      = {{FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE}},
  keywords     = {{Teleology,Semantics,Intentionality,Pathema,kata syntheken,Reference,Meaning,Similarity,Arbitrariness,Triadic sign concept,Aristotle,Plato,Presocratics,HH Lieb,E. Coseriu,Bilateralness,physei vs. thesei,Sign concept,Symbol,Theory of language,Philosophy of language,Historiography of the language sciences}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{3-4}},
  pages        = {{307--324}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  title        = {{Meaning and Reference in Aristotle's Concept of the Linguistic Sign}},
  url          = {{http://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-008-9134-y}},
  volume       = {{13}},
  year         = {{2008}},
}

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