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    Contextualism in philosophy of language, as defended by R... — Carmelics
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    Challenges→Secondary meaning (rather than primary meaning) applies when the ordinary meaning of words cannot form a connective relationship with other words in a sentence.

    Contextualism in philosophy of language, as defended by Recanati and Travis, holds that context modulates primary meaning directly without invoking a secondary semantic level.

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    Reasons For

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    • 1.Utterance meaning varies systematically with context (e.g., 'I am tired' means different things from different speakers), suggesting context directly shapes semantic content.
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    • 2.Positing multiple semantic levels multiplies theoretical entities unnecessarily when direct context-modulation explains the data more parsimoniously.
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    • 3.Speakers intuitively grasp context-dependent meanings immediately without apparent consultation of hidden semantic levels, supporting direct modulation.
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    Reasons Against

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    • 1.Some contextual effects appear compositional and systematic enough to warrant separate levels (e.g., presupposition accommodation) rather than ad-hoc direct modulation.
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    • 2.Direct context-modulation lacks principled constraints on what counts as 'primary meaning,' risking unfalsifiable claims about content revision.
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    • 3.Distinguishing semantic content from pragmatic contribution requires intermediate levels; collapsing them obscures genuine explanatory distinctions in language theory.
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    Related

    Direct context-modulation lacks principled constraints on what counts as 'primar...Distinguishing semantic content from pragmatic contribution requires intermediat...Positing multiple semantic levels multiplies theoretical entities unnecessarily ...Secondary meaning (rather than primary meaning) applies when the ordinary meanin...
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    Some contextual effects appear compositional and systematic enough to warrant se...Speakers intuitively grasp context-dependent meanings immediately without appare...Utterance meaning varies systematically with context (e.g., 'I am tired' means d...

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