1. Unintentional Meaning
Nayuta Miki (JSPS Fellow/Nihon University)
Workshop: What is (a) language? What is Meaning / Nihon university Dec

2. Today’s Plan
The problem of “speaker meaning” Intention-based semantics (IBS) What is wrong about IBS? New approach: Belief-evidence view
2014/12/18

3. Speaker meaning (Grice 1958; 1968; 1969; Schiffer 1973)
Speaker Meaning: S means that p by uttering x x p
2014/12/18

4. Examples of Speaker Meaning
“I don’t believe
John is an earthling!”
John is a genius!!
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5. Examples of Speaker Meaning
[waving a hand]
I’m not going to the party.
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6. The Problem of Speaker meaning
What is the sufficient and necessary condition of speaker meaning?
2014/12/18

7. Intention-based semantic account
IBS(Grice, Schiffer, Harman(?), Neale, Davis, ……):
The speaker’s having a particular intention gives
the condition of speaker meaning.
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8. S means that p by uttering x iff S utters x intending ……p …….
IBS Account
S means that p by uttering x iff S utters x intending ……p ……. x p x p
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9. IBS Theories (1): Grice (1958)
S means that p by uttering x
iff S utters x intending
an audience A to believe that p,
A to recognize that S intends (1), and
A’s recognition of S’s intention (1) is a reason for A to believe that p.
M-Intending an audience to believe that p
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10. IBS Theories (1): grice (1958)
S means that p by uttering x iff S utters x M-intending an audience to believe that p x p x p
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11. IBS theories (1): Grice (1958)
“I don’t believe
John is an earthling!”
John is a genius!!
2014/12/18

12. IBS Theories (1): Grice (1958)
“I don’t believe
John is an earthling!”
John is a genius!
2014/12/18

13. IBS Theories (2): grice (1968; 1969) Simplified
S means that p by uttering x
iff S utters x M-intending an audience A to believe that p without an intention to deceive A.
2014/12/18

14. IBS Theories (3): Schiffer (1973) simplified
S means that p by uttering x
iff S utters x intending an audience A and S to mutually know that S M-intends A to believe that p.
2014/12/18

15. IBS Theories (3): Schiffer (1973) Simplified
A and B mutually know that p Iff A knows that p, B knows that p, A knows that B knows that p, B knows that A knows that p, A knows that B knows that A knows that p, ……
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16. IBS Theories (3): Schiffer(1973)
S means that p by uttering x iff S utters x intending an audience and herself to mutually know that S intends A to believe p x p x p
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17. IBS Theories (4): Harman (1974) Revised
S means that p by uttering x
iff S utters x intending an audience A to believe that p by virtue of A’s recognition of this very intention
2014/12/18

18. IBS Theories (4): Harman (1974)
S means that p by uttering x iff S utters x intending an audience to believe p by virtue of his recognition of this very intention x p x p
2014/12/18

19. IBS Theories (5): Davis (2002) (Derived from his definitions)
S means that p by uttering x
iff S utters x intending her utterance of x to indicate that S believes that p
causal or statistical relation
2014/12/18

20. IBS Theories (5): Davis (2002) (derived from his definitions)
S means that p by uttering x iff S utters x intending her utterance to indicate that S believes that p x p x p
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21. A common assumption of IBS Theoriesx p
Grice
Schiffer x p x p
Harman
Davis
Intention to
make p explicit
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22. What is wrong about IBS?
Does the speaker must have such an intention in order to mean something?
2014/12/18

23. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 1
Joseph found a treasure in a dense forest. The leader of a criminal group caught and put a lie-detector on him. He said “This machine will explode and kill you if you lie. Where’s the treasure?”
2014/12/18

24. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 1
Joseph hoped to hide the place from the leader, but does not want to die. He said “a place where a big family of green giants live”, thinking this expression to be a metaphorical paraphrase of the description of the place.
2014/12/18

25. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 1
“The place where a big family of green giants live”
The treasure is in the dense forest.
But, Joseph intended not to make the proposition explicit.
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26. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 1
Grice
Schiffer
Harman
Davis ?
Meaning without the corresponding
Intentions?
2014/12/18

27. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 2
George tends to give a right answer unconsciously (if he knows it) whenever he is asked a question while he is concentrating on something. One day, he stole a wallet from one of his colleagues named Marissa. After that, he started to read a book, which happened to be interesting to him, and soon he got to concentrate on it. Marissa found her wallet disappeared and ask him “did you take my wallet?”
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28. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 2
Without any consideration and in fact even unconsciously, George said “Yes, I did.”
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29. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 2
“Yes, I did”
George stole the wallet from her.
But, George was not even aware what he said or meant.
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30. What is wrong about IBS?: Example 2
Grice
Schiffer
Harman
Davis
Meaning without the corresponding
Intentions!!
2014/12/18

31. IBS has overlooked the flexibility of a speaker’s psychology.
What is wrong about IBS?
The motivation of a speaker’s utterance can be varied from context to context.
IBS wrongly supposes it always to be a particular kind of intention.
IBS has overlooked the flexibility of a speaker’s psychology.
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32. What is wrong about IBS?
A speaker’s background psychology can be various!
2014/12/18

33. Belief-evidence semantics
But, then, what is it for a speaker to mean something if not uttering with a particular intention?
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34. Belief-evidence semantics
When a speaker means something, her utterance gives evidence of her belief.
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35. Belief-Evidence semantics
“The place where a big family of green giants live”
The treasure is in the dense forest.
Joseph must believe that the treasure is in the dense forest
to produce this utterance
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36. Belief-evidence semantics
“Yes, I did”
George stole the wallet from her.
George must believe that he stole it to produce this utterance
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37. Belief-evidence semantics
evidence relation = abductive consequence relation
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38. Belief-Evidence semantics
Peirce’s (1903) abduction:
A surprising fact A is observed.
If B were true, A would be a matter of course.
Therefore, B is true.
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39. Belief-Evidence semantics
A speaker utters x. If she believes that p (and has some other relevant mental states), then her utterance of x is a matter of course. Therefore, she believes that p (and has the other relevant mental states). The speaker means that p by uttering x.
2014/12/18

40. Belief-evidence semanticsx
evidence p p
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41. Conclusion
IBS: a certain intention to make the proposition explicit. Examples of meaning without such an intention. Meaning as evidence of belief
2014/12/18