Inquiries Into Truth and Interpretation

by Donald Davidson

Book Overview

The eighteen essays in this collection address the question of what it is for words to mean what they do. Davidson covers such topics as the relation between theories of truth and theories of meaning, translation, quotation, belief, radical interpretation, reference, metaphor, and communication.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0198750463
• ISBN13: 9780198750468
• Release Date: April 1984
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 312 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.4" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

very hard to read, but pays

As the previous reviewer says, the book contains many of Davidson's seminal papers in the philosophy of language. This book, however, cannot be used as an introduction to anything, not to philosophy of language and not even to Davidson's. His style is extremely compressed, and sometimes he merely intimates what should be carefully explained. What it ideally takes two paragraphs to say, Davidson says in two lines; each sentence is therefore crammed up with thoughts; at some places the author becomes oracular. I would love to say that Ramberg's book on Davidson can be of help for the beginner, but I must confess instead that I find Davidson's "Inquires" an excellent commentary on Ramberg. This book will be understood only by those who are already trained in philosophy of language and who understand some logic too. I said "only by", not "by all". For critical comments on the contents of the book, I refer the reader to a rather harsh and carping review by Jonathan Bennett, I think it was in "Mind", 1985. As one reviewer in the backcover says, "struggle and learn". Here you have a great book by a great philosopher of language.

Read it!

Excellent book. A must read for everyone interested in philosophy of language. This book contains all of Davidson's important articles concerning philosophy of language.