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    The verificationist criterion of meaning, as Ayer himself... — Carmelics
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    Supports→Logical Positivism fails as a philosophical method.

    The verificationist criterion of meaning, as Ayer himself conceded, cannot itself be verified empirically and thus self-refutes by its own standard.

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    Reasons For

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    Reason for
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    • 1.The verificationist criterion claims only empirically verifiable statements are meaningful, but this criterion itself is not empirically verifiable.
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    • 2.If a principle cannot meet its own standards, it cannot rationally be endorsed without special pleading or arbitrary exemption.
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    • 3.Ayer acknowledged this problem explicitly, suggesting the criterion's proponents recognized its reflexive inconsistency.
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    Reasons Against

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    Reason against
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    • 1.The criterion applies to synthetic claims about the world, not to logical or definitional claims about meaning itself.
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    • 2.Metalinguistic principles (rules about language) need not satisfy the same standards as object-language claims they govern.
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    • 3.Ayer revised verificationism to address this via degrees of confirmability, suggesting the objection targets only crude formulations.
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    Truth & Knowledge1 linkedPhilosophy of Language1 linked

    Related

    Ayer acknowledged this problem explicitly, suggesting the criterion's proponents...Ayer revised verificationism to address this via degrees of confirmability, sugg...If a principle cannot meet its own standards, it cannot rationally be endorsed w...Logical Positivism fails as a philosophical method.
    +3 moreShow less
    Metalinguistic principles (rules about language) need not satisfy the same stand...The criterion applies to synthetic claims about the world, not to logical or def...The verificationist criterion claims only empirically verifiable statements are ...

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    2 (1 for, 1 against)
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