Dummett Michael. Frege: Philosophy of Language

Harper & Row, 1973. — xxv, 698 pages. — ISBN: 06 011132 1.This is the definitive work on the philosophy of Gottlob Frege, one of the fundamental figures in modern philosophy. There is no standard work on Frege, who is the source figure for Russell, Witt­
genstein, and all others in modern philosophy.Nearly ten years in the writing by Michael Dummett of Oxford, the present work deals with Frege’s philosophy of language; a second volume will treat his philosophy of mathematics. The book is an exposition and an evaluation. Frege was the initiator of the modern period in the study of logic. His philosophical logic came at the time when logic was to replace epistemology (the theory of knowledge) as the starting point in philosophy. Frege’s first important undertaking involved framing a formal language adequate for the expression of any mathematical statement or any train of mathematical reasoning. His explanation and justification of his views led him into profound discussions of issues of general philosophical interest, in particular the notions of the meaning of an expression and of analytic truth.Though he is regarded as one of the great figures in philosophy of the past hundred years, Frege’s life was one of disillusionment and frustration. With a few exceptions he was ignored by mathematicians and philosophers, and when he died in 1925 he was convinced his life’s work had been neglected and was for the most part a failure.Sense and Tone
Quantifiers
The Hierarchy of Levels
Proper Names
Sense and Reference
Some Theses of Frege’s on Sense and Reference
The Reference of Incomplete Expressions
The Incompleteness of Concepts and Functions
Indirect Reference
Assertion
Thoughts
Truth-value and Reference
Can Truth be Defined?
Abstract Objects
Quantification
Identity
Original Sinn
The Evolution of Frege’s Thought
Frege’s Place in the History of Philosophy