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Terminated in academic year 2009/2010

Principles of Logical Analysis of Language

Type of study Follow-up Master
Language of instruction Czech
Code 456-0119/01
Abbreviation PLAJ
Course title Principles of Logical Analysis of Language
Credits 4
Coordinating department Department of Computer Science
Course coordinator prof. RNDr. Marie Duží, CSc.

Subject syllabus

Lectures:
Introduction. What is the meaning of a natural language expression? Logical entailment (consequence relation) as a subject matter of logic. Paradoxical arguments - an inadequate analysis of premises.
Constraints of the 1st-order predicate logic: An insufficient degree of expressiveness, extensionality. Frege's problem, the paradox of analysis.
Frege-Church schema: What do we speak about and the way we speak about it. Denotational semantics vs. procedural semantics.
Transparent intensional logic (TIL): Characteristic features, philosophy.
The simple theory of types, epistemic base, possible worlds, intensions vs. extensions.
The key notion of TIL - construction.
The problem of (non)existence, modalities, tenses.
Analysis of interrogative sentences, queries.
The ramified theory of types, meaning conceived as a concept - closed construction.

Solutions of the paradox of analysis and omniscience.
Homonymous, synonymous and equivalent expressions. Analysis of expressions with empty concepts as constituents. Using and mentioning concepts.
Partial functions, presuppositions, de re vs. de dicto suppositions.
Propositional and notional attitudes.
Problems connected with using partial functions.



Exercises:
Basic notions of predicate logic (PL)
Correct arguments that are not justifiable using PL
Type analysis of simple mathematical expressions
Intensions vs. extensions
Analysis of mathematical expressions - finding the TIL construction
Analysis of (non)existence
Modalities (the analysis of possibility and necessity)
Analysis of interrogative sentences
Ramified theory of types, the theory of concept
Expressions involving empty concepts, using and mentioning
Presupposition, supposition de dicto / de re
Propositional and notional attitudes

Problems connected with using partial functions

Literature

Tichý, P.: The Foundations of Frege's Logic. De Gruyter 1988.
Duží, M., Materna P.: Constructions. http://www.phil.muni.cz/fil/logika/til/
Materna P.: Concepts and Objects. Acta Philosophica Fennica, Vol. 63, Helsinki 1998.

Materna, P., Štěpán J.: Filosofická logika: Nová cesta? Olomouc 2000.
Organon F. Filosofický časopis Bratislava.
The Logica Yearbooks. FILOSOFIA Praha.

Advised literature

Duží, M., Materna P.: Constructions. http://www.phil.muni.cz/fil/logika/til/
Duží, M., Jespersen, B., Materna P.: Procedural Semantics for Hyperintensional Logic. Foundations and Applications of TIL. Springer (2010).