Talk:Proposition

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This entry is very dictionary-ish... --k.lee

I agree. But it could become a decent disambiguation page in the future. --mav

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I've tried to rewrite the article into something managable (unfortunately I'm finding a lot of older Wikipedia philosophy articles read like bad lecture notes). I don't think it needs to be a disambiguation page yet, because the non-philosophical uses of proposition are (I think) fully explained in the short space they're given.

I'm worried I came out sounding a little too pro-proposition; it's difficult to cover a subject that some people claim don't exist without asserting its existence more often than not. If a better writer or someone more familiar with the arguments against propositions would like to extend that section or touch up the rest of the entry, please do. piman 04:30, 2005 Feb 27 (UTC)

[edit] New lead paragraph

The old lead paragraph read:

In modern philosophy, logic and linguistics, a proposition is the meaning of a sentence, rather than the sentence itself. In ordinary usage, a proposition is like an offer, a request, or a suggestion: it is something which is proposed. (Will you marry me? proposes matrimony.) This article is concerned with a related technical sense, in which any sentence, when asserted, proposes that a certain claim is true.

I deleted this paragraph and replaced it by:

Propositions are a term used in logic to describe the content of assertions, content which may be taken as being true or false, and which are a non-linguistic abstraction from the linguistic sentence that constitutes an assertion. The nature of propositions are highly controversial amongst pohilosophers, many of whom are skeptical about the existence of propositions, and many logicians prefer to avoid use of the term proposition in favour of using sentences.

Points:

1. The nature of propositions is highly controversial, and there is no consensus claiming that propositions are meanings of sentences. The term content is used to mean more or less the whatever it is of sentences that propositions are.
2. The old attempt to explain proposition in terms of proposing something are unconvincing: the normal analysis of propositions is as assertions (as opposed to questions, commands, etc.). I changed this languages.
3. It's worth highlighting the controversy and skepticism about propositions in the lead paragraph, I think. --- Charles Stewart 17:45, 19 May 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Propositional logic

"Propositional logic is so named because its atomic elements the expressions of complete propositions"

"Propositional logic is so named because its atomic elements are the expressions of complete propositions"? --Memenen 19:02, 24 July 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Street Philosopher

I wanted to insert the following change, but then I realized this material really only deserves, at best, to be in the discussion section here. I am just learning how to use Wikipedia. I apologize for the confusion. If there is way to undo the edits I submitted to the article, I will be glad to do so. The first change consisted of some thoughts below. The 2nd change was to take the thoughts out from the article. I apologize if I messed anything up.

To my comments, for what they are worth...

When I read, For example, Tiny crystals of frozen water precipitation are white is in English, but is said to be the same proposition as snow is white by virtue of the definition of snow.

I inserted...

Noam Chomsky (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noam_chomsky put all this kind of discussion to rest with the system for sentences, prescriptive vs. descriptive etc., called Generative Grammer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generative_grammar. Generative grammer is new technology, superceding the discussion of this paragraph, and the next.

Lengthy, tortured strings of philosopohical discussion often indicate the wrong language being used to express ideas. Yes, there is a way to state the relationships between propositions and assertions in English, but they flow more easily in math. That is what Chomsky laid out.

I realize that is cocky of me to say, especially since I know jack sh!t about this stuff. I am just trying to contribute, in case what I said made sense. If it didn't, then I am sorry to have distracted you.

I want people already working on this material to know, I very much appreciate your efforts to make this information available to lay people, such as myself. This is a treasure you are building here. I am very very grateful. Peace.