Wittgenstein, Dummett, and Travis

This chapter discusses differences between the Wittgensteinian account of content developed by Travis and systematic theories of meaning and language. These theories aspire to explain knowledge of linguistic meaning and language use in terms of a uniform framework, such as truth conditions. An alternative framework for thinking about language and linguistic meaning is presented, based on Wittgenstein’s later philosophy of logic. One component of this is an explanation of how logic is possible as a non-empirical discipline, when it is acknowledged that logic is concerned with parochial forms of thought and language, rather than abstract principles adhered to by any possible speaker or thinker. This view makes it possible to account for multiple dimensions of meaning determination, including Travisian parochial considerations which are now explainable as particular dimensions of meaning determination, and to transcend the restrictive commitment of systematic theories to the uniformity of meaning determination.