For centuries referential theories of language and
meaning have dominated Western philosophy. The idea
that noises and scratches become meaningful words
and writing by virtue of a mental grasp one has on
the referents they are talking about has become
deeply entrenched. Starting with Plato, and
reinvented by Locke, contemporary theorists continue
to reproduce this mental fix requirement in their
philosophies of language and intentionality-
Physicalists, such as Paul and Patricia Churchland
are typical. Plato, Locke and the Churchlands all
share the view that bits of language reach...