[Marxism] Semantic Structures (And Social Action)

["Jurriaan Bendien" <bendien@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Quine had a good quote once: "the university is not the universe".

When you say that:

Chomsky's work has (admittedly) relatively few consequences for
*Ideologiekritik* other than its (quite spirited and cogent) defense of
Enlightenment values about the mind.

Then:

This is perhaps true, but you are objectifying a discourse rather than
participating in it. Chomsky's generative grammars do pick out something
about language learning by ordinary folks. My point is really that a
sensitivity to linguistics and language is helpful in distinguishing between
truth and nonsense.

You:

But on the other hand, contemporary semantics has a great deal to do with
proof and the van Benthem school (now expanded to part of Stanford) is today
almost alone in suggesting there is an important level to the study of
language beyond stretching provability to fit the exigencies of natural
language; and my theoretical essays (collected in edited form on my website)
address such issues in *relatively readable* prose.  They're not
recommended, really, but such things do exist.

me:

Well, yes, the formalisation of a variable or a relation does assume
semantics.

You:

 UvA has something worth saying and I can't imagine that institution costs
people around it too much.

Me:

Of course the UVA has things worth saying. It's just that I am pretty
hostile to pomo discourses these days.

J.