The aim of this chapter is to examine Peter John Olivi’s theory of the signification of words and the role it plays within the conservation of a community. In the Quaestiones logicales and in the Quid ponat ius, Olivi distinguishes the individual act of signification in which the meaning of words is multiplied by every single user from a habitual signification, which is shared in common by speakers and carries normative value. Such normativity is grounded on the ontological nature of signs as re…
Read moreThe aim of this chapter is to examine Peter John Olivi’s theory of the signification of words and the role it plays within the conservation of a community. In the Quaestiones logicales and in the Quid ponat ius, Olivi distinguishes the individual act of signification in which the meaning of words is multiplied by every single user from a habitual signification, which is shared in common by speakers and carries normative value. Such normativity is grounded on the ontological nature of signs as relational entities linking a will and its object. In particular, the habitual side of signification stems from an original pact of meanings agreed upon by the collective intention of a people, a community. For such a social role, speakers are normally expected to respect habitual meaning and avoid the deceptive use of signs as to do so is an act of lying that undermines the stability of the whole community.
