[Wittrs] Re: Nominalism / Neil
- From: "jrstern" <jrstern@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: wittrs@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 09 Sep 2009 02:57:24 -0000
--- In Wittrs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "iro3isdx" <xznwrjnk-evca@...> wrote:
>
> Some people do have difficulty with the idea of symbols that don't
> symbolize. It seems to me that mathematical platonism is there to
> deal with such a difficulty. Just invent an imaginary platonic
> realm, and have those symbols refer to ideal objects in the
> platonic realm.
Well, of course, but I don't recognize any value
in making such an invention, if one ever wants to come
up with any linkage to the real. Same problem as
Cartesian dualism.
> What seems strange to me, is that you say you are a nominalist.
> And I take nominalism to say that universals do not exist, we
> merely have names for them. So those names are then symbols that
> don't symbolize.
That *do* symbolize.
> So I would think a nominalist should be quite comfortable dealing
> with non-referring symbols.
>
> The letters of the alphabet are symbols that don't symbolize.
>
> I'm not understanding why you have a problem there.
Because you are not using the word "symbol" for that which
symbolizes, you are using the term "symbol" for any mark which
may become a symbol, and that is the whole point.
Letters are not symbols, in that definition, exactly because
they do not symbolize, as we agree they do not.
The term "symbol" and the definition I am asserting, has a long
history of usage in semiotics and linguistics. It is careless,
or just wrong, to mistake a mark for a symbol In any case, I am
going to go with the conventional usage in my talk, because I am
fascinated by the transition, because I want to see if a computer
can "do it".
Don't you find that at all interesting?
Josh
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