PhB Bachelor of Philosophy Philosophy of Language

Question 1

According to Frege, the 'sense' (Sinn) of an expression is best described as:

Accepted Answer

The mode of presentation by which the referent is determined

Answer

The physical object it refers to

Answer

The emotional response it evokes in listeners

Answer

The grammatical category of the expression

Question 2

Bertrand Russell's theory of definite descriptions analyzes 'The present King of France is bald' as:

Accepted Answer

False, because it asserts existence, uniqueness, and a property, and the existence claim fails

Answer

Meaningless because France has no king

Answer

True, since it refers to a non-existent entity

Answer

Neither true nor false due to presupposition failure

Question 3

Which philosopher argued that the meaning of a word is its use, understood through participation in 'language games'?

Accepted Answer

Ludwig Wittgenstein

Answer

Gottlob Frege

Answer

Bertrand Russell

Answer

W.V.O. Quine

Question 4

J.L. Austin's speech act theory identifies 'illocutionary acts' as:

Accepted Answer

The action performed in saying something, such as promising or warning

Answer

The physical production of sounds or written marks

Answer

The effect produced in the listener as a result of the utterance

Answer

The syntactic structure underlying the sentence

Question 5

Grice's maxim of Quantity states that a speaker should:

Accepted Answer

Make their contribution as informative as required, but not more so

Answer

Avoid ambiguous or obscure expressions

Answer

Be polite and considerate toward the listener

Answer

Only assert what they believe to be true

Question 6

The primary difference between semantics and pragmatics is that semantics studies:

Accepted Answer

The conventional, context-independent meanings of linguistic expressions

Answer

How context shapes the interpretation of utterances

Answer

The effects of language on human behavior

Answer

Social norms and rules governing conversation

Question 7

Which theory holds that the meaning of a proper name is given by a cluster of descriptions that speakers associate with its bearer?

Accepted Answer

The cluster description theory, associated with Searle and the later Wittgenstein

Answer

The causal-historical theory of reference

Answer

Kripke's rigid designator theory

Answer

Tarski's semantic theory of truth