Scientific Preconceptions in Locke's Philosophy of Language
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4455650 |
|---|---|
| Authors | David A Givner (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1962 |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 340 |
| Publication date | 1962-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of the History of Ideas (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-5037 • E-ISSN: 1086-3222 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/2708071 |
| OpenAlex | W2335182027 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 6 |
The purpose of this paper is to show how two ideas, both related to science, influenced Locke's philosophy of language. One idea concerns the nature of matter; the second is about the nature, method, and purpose of science. It will be argued, first of all, that Boyle's corpuscular hypothesis was the assumption on which Locke based his belief that language cannot represent the real nature and structure of things and, consequently, that language is only a convenient device for organizing information for the purpose of communication. Secondly, it will be shown that key ideas in Locke's account of language have their origin in Locke's experience with medicine and biology. It will be argued that Locke used medicine and biology, rather than physics and mathematics, as a model of science. Accordingly, when he philosophized about the purpose and improvement of language, his ideas were drawn from what he knew to be the function and use of language in the biological sciences of his day
Epistemology · Classical Philosophy and Thought · Historical Philosophy and Science · Philosophy
| Unique citing works | 6 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,1 |
| Citation span | 1965 - 1996 (32) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |