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11Relativism and radical interpretationThe European Legacy 2 (4): 603-608. 1997.It has been argued by a number of philosophers that relativism of rationality and truth is inconsistent with the preconditions for radical interpretation of speech. For radical interpretation involves the imposition of certain universal standards of rationality and truth upon the material to be interpreted. Hence an anti-Relativist argument ensues. Against this, I argue that the principles of radical interpretation leave sufficient slack for relativism of a non-Trivial sort to creep in
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7The Euthanasia Debate in Germany - What's the Fuss?Journal of Applied Philosophy 11 (2): 213-224. 1994.Both opponents and proponents of Singer's right to speak about euthanasia have concentrated on the tenability of his claims. They have ignored the question of what legitimate grounds there are for suppressing academic discussion, and have failed to take into account the discussion of freedom of speech in recent legal theory. To do this is the aim of my paper. Section I claims that Singer's position is immoral. Section 2 turns to the question of whether it is protected by freedom of speech, irres…Read more
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38Animals, thoughts and conceptsSynthese 123 (1): 35-104. 2000.There are three main positions on animalthought: lingualism denies that non-linguistic animalshave any thoughts; mentalism maintains that theirthoughts differ from ours only in degree, due totheir different perceptual inputs; an intermediateposition, occupied by common sense and Wittgenstein,maintains that animals can have thoughts of a simplekind. This paper argues in favor of an intermediateposition. It considers the most important arguments infavor of lingualism, namely those inspired byDav…Read more
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21The linguistic doctrine revisitedGrazer Philosophische Studien 66 (1): 143-170. 2003.At present, there is an almost universal consensus that the linguistic doctrine of logical necessity is grotesque. This paper explores avenues for rehabilitating a limited version of the doctrine, according to which the special status of analytic statements like 'All vixens are female' is to be explained by reference to language. Far from being grotesque, this appeal to language has a respectable philosophical pedigree and chimes with common sense, as Quine came to realize. The problem lies in d…Read more
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26Concepts, conceptual schemes and grammarPhilosophia 37 (4): 653-668. 2009.This paper considers the connection between concepts, conceptual schemes and grammar in Wittgenstein’s last writings. It lists eight claims about concepts that one can garner from these writings. It then focuses on one of them, namely that there is an important difference between conceptual and factual problems and investigations. That claim draws in its wake other claims, all of them revolving around the idea of a conceptual scheme, what Wittgenstein calls a ‘grammar’. I explain why Wittgenstei…Read more
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5Subjective, intersubjective, objectivePhilosophical Investigations 26 (4). 2003.Books reviewed: Donald Davidson, Subjective, Intersubjective, Objective.
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2'Analytic versus Continental: Arguments on the Methods and Value of Philosophy', by James Chase and Jack ReynoldsAustralasian Journal of Philosophy 90 (2): 398-402. 2012.Australasian Journal of Philosophy, Volume 0, Issue 0, Page 1-5, Ahead of Print.
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4Reviews lot 2: The language of thought revisited by Jerry A. Fodor oxford university press, 2008Philosophy 85 (1): 164-167. 2010.
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2Wie wichtig ist Erkenntnistheorie?Zeitschrift für Philosophische Forschung 56 (1). 2002.In der zeitgenössischen analytischen Philosophe wird oft behauptet, die Erkenntnistheorie sei weniger fundamental als die Ontologie, da sich aus Aussagen über unser Erkenntnisvermögen keine Aussagen über die Wirklichkeit ableiten lassen und die Frage nach der Beschaffenheit der Wirklichkeit der Frage nach ihrer Erkennbarkeit vorausgeht. Dagegen verteidige ich folgende Thesen: eine Form der Erkenntnistheorie—die Auseinandersetzung mit der Skepsis —ist nicht fundamental; eine andere Form—die Ausei…Read more
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22Wittgenstein's `Philosophical Investigations': Text and ContextPhilosophical Quarterly 44 (176): 392-394. 1994.
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1Perspectives on Wittgenstein : an intermittently opinionated surveyIn Guy Kahane, Edward Kanterian & Oskari Kuusela (eds.), Wittgenstein and His Interpreters: Essays in Memory of Gordon Baker, Wiley-blackwell. 2007.
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7Wittgenstein and Analytic Philosophy: Essays for P. M. S. Hacker (edited book)Oxford University Press. 2009.Thirteen leading contributors offer new essays in honour of the eminent philosopher and Wittgenstein scholar Peter Hacker. They discuss issues in the interpretation of Wittgenstein, investigate central topics in the history of analytic philosophy, and explore and assess Wittgensteinian ideas about language, mind, action, ethics, and religion.
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2Meaning, rules, and conventionsIn David K. Levy & Edoardo Zamuner (eds.), Wittgenstein’s Enduring Arguments, Routledge. 2008.
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3Does language require conventionsIn Pasquale Frascolla, Diego Marconi & Alberto Voltolini (eds.), Wittgenstein: mind, meaning and metaphilosophy, Palgrave-macmillan. pp. 85--112. 2010.
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1The influence of Wittgenstein on American philosophyIn Cheryl Misak (ed.), The Oxford handbook of American philosophy, Oxford University Press. 2008.
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18Concepts, abilities, and propositionsGrazer Philosophische Studien 81 (1): 115-134. 2010.This article investigates whether the concept of a concept can be given a fairly uniform explanation through a 'cognitivist' account, one that accepts that concepts exist independently of individual subjects, yet nonetheless invokes mental achievements and capacities. I consider various variants of such an account, which identify a concept, respectively, with a certain kind of abilitiy, rule and way of thinking. All of them are confronted with what I call the 'proposition problem', namely that u…Read more