Work

A hint as to my grounds for judgement: Frege’s positive account of modality

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Frege’s Begriffsschrift account of modality involves both a negative and a positive claim. The negative claim is that modal notions are logically insignificant; the positive claim is that modals convey a ‘hint’ (Wink) as to the speaker’s grounds for judgement. This paper is about Frege’s positive claim, which has not received much attention. I explain in detail the Fregean notion of hinting and how to distinguish hints from conceptual contents, and I argue that Frege’s two-dimensional account of modal talk is supported by various observations. However, it also seems clear that Frege’s account cannot be the whole story.

Source: British Journal for the History of Philosophy

DOI: 10.1080/09608788.2024.2445597

Author: Thorsten Sander

Institution: University of Duisburg-Essen

Language: English

Topic: Philosophy and Theoretical Science

Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Funder: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft

Award: Zur Aktualität von Freges Pragmatik