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We instinctively operate with meaning in everyday life and we base our actions on conditions that we usually evaluate to hold in the world around us. In this seminar, we will explore the way meaning has been modeled from a scientific point of view with the precise tools of modern linguistic theory. We will focus on the following questions: (1) Which basic semantic ontology do we need to entertain for a working system of meaning? (For example, we will want to make reference to individuals in the case of Hilary Clinton or Jane Austen, but to truth-conditions, e.g. to evaluate whether it’s still break time or not); (2) How do different types of meaning interact (2a) with one another (e.g. how do we get the meaning of a sentence from the meanings of its subject, predicate, and their mode of combination) and (2b) with neighboring linguistic systems (e.g. with the structure of phrases, with principles of rational human behavior, or with the intonation of focus). A main aim of the seminar is to offer the key to understanding up-to-date semantic research. Continuous exercise practice will crucially accompany the class.
References:
Heim, Irene and Angelika Kratzer (1998): Semantics in Generative Grammar. Oxford: Blackwell.
Portner, Paul. (2005). What is Meaning – Fundamentals of Formal Semantics. Oxford: Blackwell. |
