• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Philosophy Professor logo

PhilosophyProfessor.com

  • Philosophers
  • Philosophies

indeterminacy of reference and translation

Willard Van Orman Quine (1908-2000), the American mathematical logician, has claimed that when translating an alien language we construct hypotheses as to what is being said, or what items the words refer to; however, except in a few basic cases, it is impossible in principle to decide conclusively between different hypotheses which differ in ways affecting not only the meaning but even the truth of what is being said.

Quine’s example is that a ‘native’ might utter the word ‘gavagai’, which we take to mean ‘rabbit’; but it might be interpreted (with suitable adjustments to our interpretation of the rest of the sentence) as ‘undetached rabbit part’, or ‘momentary temporal part of an enduring rabbit’, and so on.

Strictly, this indeterminacy applies to all translation or interpretation, even within one language. This makes Quine doubt whether there really is such a thing as synonymy, and is connected with his holism.

Also see: principles of charity, humanity, radical interpretation

Source:
W V O Quine, Word and Object (1960), ch. 2

Table of Contents

    • 0.1 Related:
  • 1 Videos
  • 2 Related Products
    • 2.1 A Companion to the Philosophy of Language (Blackwell Companions to Philosophy)
    • 2.2 Words and Objections: Essays on the Work of W.V. Quine (Synthese Library)
    • 2.3 Analytic Philosophy in America: And Other Historical and Contemporary Essays
    • 2.4 A Companion to the Philosophy of Language

Related:

  • radical interpretation
  • Willard Van Orman Quine
  • humanity principle
  • sense and reference
  • perspectivism

  • Videos

  • Related Products

     
    A Companion to the Philosophy of Language (Blackwell Companions to Philosophy)

    A Companion to the Philosophy of Language (Blackwell Companions to Philosophy)

    • Amazon Kindle Edition
    • English (Publication Language)
    • 1152 Pages - 02/17/2017 (Publication Date) - Wiley-Blackwell (Publisher)
    Check Price on Amazon
     
    Words and Objections: Essays on the Work of W.V. Quine (Synthese Library)

    Words and Objections: Essays on the Work of W.V. Quine (Synthese Library)

    • Used Book in Good Condition
    • English (Publication Language)
    • 384 Pages - 04/30/1975 (Publication Date) - Springer (Publisher)
    Check Price on Amazon
     
    Analytic Philosophy in America: And Other Historical and Contemporary Essays

    Analytic Philosophy in America: And Other Historical and Contemporary Essays

    • Amazon Kindle Edition
    • Soames, Scott (Author)
    • English (Publication Language)
    • 370 Pages - 03/23/2014 (Publication Date) - Princeton University Press (Publisher)
    Check Price on Amazon
     
    A Companion to the Philosophy of Language

    A Companion to the Philosophy of Language

    • Used Book in Good Condition
    • English (Publication Language)
    • 740 Pages - 06/04/1999 (Publication Date) - Wiley-Blackwell (Publisher)
    Check Price on Amazon
  • Last update 2020-06-17. Price and product availability may change.

    degrees of truth

    Absolutism

    psychophysical parallelism

    speciation theory

    egocentric predicament

    • Contact
    • Facebook

    Copyright © 2021 · CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON SERVICES LLC. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME. “AS AN AMAZON ASSOCIATE I EARN FROM QUALIFYING PURCHASES.”