This book is a unique and accessible reference guide to the work of eighty key figures who have played an important role in the development of ideas about language from antiquity to the twenty-first century. The entries are extensively cross referenced, allowing readers to trace influences, developments, and debates both in contemporary thinking and across time. Each entry concludes with suggestions for further reading of primary texts and secondary sources, encouraging readers to find out more about the particular key thinker and the impact of his or her ideas.

This volume aims to provide students with a clear and concise introduction to the main topics of the philosophy of language. Focusing on what linguists need to know and how philosophy relates to modern linguistics, the book contains five chapters, each relating to a different branch of linguistic analysis. The author looks at key issues in the philosophy of language, traces the history and development of ideas, and outlines the contributions of specific philosophers.

Philosophy for Linguists provides students with a clear, concise introduction to the main topics in the philosophy of language. Focusing on what students of linguistics need to know and how philosophy relates to modern linguistics, the book is structured around key branches of the field: semantics, pragmatics, and language acquisition. Assuming no prior knowledge of philosophy, Siobhan Chapman traces the history and development of ideas in the philosophy of language and outlines the contributions of specific philosophers. The book is highly accessible and student-oriented and includes: a...

Paul Grice (1913-1988) is best known for his psychological account of meaning, and for his theory of conversational implicature, although these form only part of a large and diverse body of work. This is the first book to consider Grice's work as a whole. Drawing on the range of his published writing, and also on unpublished manuscripts, lectures and notes, Siobhan Chapman discusses the development of Grice's ideas and relates his work to the major events of his intellectual and professional life.

The author offers a new assessment of the influence of the Vienna Circle on language study, and considers its relevance to the debate in present-day linguistics about the relative merits of 'intuitive' and 'real life' sources of data.

Paul Grice (1913-1988) is best known for his psychological account of meaning, and for his theory of conversational implicature, although these form only part of a large and diverse body of work. This is the first book to consider Grice's work as a whole. Drawing on the range of his published writing, and also on unpublished manuscripts, lectures and notes, Siobhan Chapman discusses the development of Grice's ideas and relates his work to the major events of his intellectual and professional life.

This book offers introductory entries on 80 ideas that have shaped the study of language up to the present day. Entries are written by experts in the fields of linguistics and the philosophy of language to reflect the full range of approaches and modes of thought. Each entry includes a brief description of the idea, an account of its development, and its impact on the field of language study. The book is written in an accessible style with clear descriptions of technical terms, guides to further reading, and extensive cross-referencing between entries. A useful additional feature of this book...

This accessible and engaging text introduces the field of pragmatics, the study of the relationship between linguistic meaning and context. Assuming no prior knowledge, Siobhan Chapman surveys the development of pragmatics from the very beginning to the present day, and engages with many of the most recent debates in the field, including topics such as experimental pragmatics and (im)politeness theory. This highly-readable text focuses on core theoretical pragmatics, but also considers how pragmatics has been applied to the study of various aspects of language in use, such as literature,...

This first book-length study of the work and life of L. Susan Stebbing relates the development of her thought to the philosophical, social and political background of her life. It also assesses Stebbing's contribution in the light of developments both in analytic philosophy and in linguistics in the decade since her death.

In considering the ways in which current theories of language in use and communicative processes are applied to the analysis, interpretation and definition of literary texts, this book sets an agenda for the future of pragmatic literary stylistics and provides a foundation for future research and debate.