Introduction to Philosophy: Language and Paradox

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Introduction to Philosophy: Languageand Paradox
10112-01 (36964)
Beall
2-3:15 MW
First Year Students Only

This course explores a small handful of paradoxes that arise in natural language, focusing especially on paradoxes involving truth, validity, and self-reference. Central examples include the liar paradox, the Curry paradox (a paradox of validity), and property paradoxes associated with self-exemplification (e.g. Cantor/Russell-style paradoxes). A recurring theme in the course is the role of truth in generating paradox. Alfred Tarski famously suggested that paradox arises in natural language due to its “universality,” but what this universality amounts to – and whether it should be resisted – is itself a philosophical question. We explore a few broad families of responses to paradox (e.g. restrictionist, gap-based, and glut-based approaches), paying close attention to their motivations, strengths, and costs. The course emphasizes conceptual clarity, philosophical argument, and active engagement. Some familiarity with formal logic and formal languages
will be useful, but none is presupposed.