Should Proper Names Still Seem So Problematic?

Abstract

Abstract What determines the reference of a proper name? What is the meaning of a proper name? Kripke presented a radically new "picture" in answer to the reference question. Andrea Bianchi claims that "forty years later, we do not possess a fully blown theory built on his picture." This chapter presents such a theory based on developments of Kripke's picture that Devitt made in Designation and elsewhere. Kripke did not answer the meaning question, but many influenced by him have adopted "direct reference". Devitt's own answer was that a name's meaning is its causal mode of reference. This strikes many as a shocking idea. This chapter argues that it should not be. Interestingly, the idea has recently been urged, with much the same argument, by Kaplan. The reference and meaning of "descriptive names" are also discussed. The chapter concludes that proper names should not still seem so problematic.

Cite this work

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 92 citations exist upstream.