Contexts: A Study in the Semantics of Indexical Expressions
Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles (
1997)
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Abstract
Against the traditional theory of indexicals, I suggest that some utterances of sentences containing occurrences of indexical expressions must be evaluated with respect to a context distinct from the context of utterance. This proposal yields an intuitively correct treatment of a variety of linguistic phenomena. I discuss the interpretation of recorded messages, certain peculiar examples involving 'here', 'now', and 'I', the generic uses of indexicals, and some problems related to discourse about fiction. I also consider the logical consequences of my view, and I argue that certain examples which are commonly taken as logically valid are not recognized as logical truths in my system