A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of Noncontradiction

The purpose of this study is to suggest and explain an engaging approach to three distinct types of (alleged or genuine) semantic paradoxes, the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox, the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox, and the Liar Paradox, in a unifying way that is sensitive to distinct features of them. Al...

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Main Author: Mou Bo
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: De Gruyter 2025-04-01
Series:Open Philosophy
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1515/opphil-2025-0069
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author Mou Bo
author_facet Mou Bo
author_sort Mou Bo
collection DOAJ
description The purpose of this study is to suggest and explain an engaging approach to three distinct types of (alleged or genuine) semantic paradoxes, the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox, the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox, and the Liar Paradox, in a unifying way that is sensitive to distinct features of them. Although the three types of semantic paradoxes address distinct types of objects, and although their seemingly paradoxical features are different (alleged or genuine), their distinct structures and contents can be understood and treated on the same common ground, which is jointly conceived in people’s pretheoretic understandings of truth and of the double-reference feature of people’s basic employment of language (saying something about an object), and from the unifying vantage point of a double-reference approach.
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spelling doaj-art-acd95022e0f8424c814c349aad06daf82025-08-20T03:06:35ZengDe GruyterOpen Philosophy2543-88752025-04-01811246210.1515/opphil-2025-0069A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of NoncontradictionMou Bo0Department of Philosophy, San Jose State University, San Jose, California, United StatesThe purpose of this study is to suggest and explain an engaging approach to three distinct types of (alleged or genuine) semantic paradoxes, the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox, the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox, and the Liar Paradox, in a unifying way that is sensitive to distinct features of them. Although the three types of semantic paradoxes address distinct types of objects, and although their seemingly paradoxical features are different (alleged or genuine), their distinct structures and contents can be understood and treated on the same common ground, which is jointly conceived in people’s pretheoretic understandings of truth and of the double-reference feature of people’s basic employment of language (saying something about an object), and from the unifying vantage point of a double-reference approach.https://doi.org/10.1515/opphil-2025-0069double referencepre-theoretic “way-things-are-capturing” understanding of truthrelative identitysemantic paradoxes (showing/involving genuine or alleged contradictions)
spellingShingle Mou Bo
A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of Noncontradiction
Open Philosophy
double reference
pre-theoretic “way-things-are-capturing” understanding of truth
relative identity
semantic paradoxes (showing/involving genuine or alleged contradictions)
title A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of Noncontradiction
title_full A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of Noncontradiction
title_fullStr A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of Noncontradiction
title_full_unstemmed A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of Noncontradiction
title_short A Unifying Double-Reference Approach to Semantic Paradoxes: From the White-Horse-Not-Horse Paradox and the Ultimate-Unspeakable Paradox to the Liar Paradox in View of the Principle of Noncontradiction
title_sort unifying double reference approach to semantic paradoxes from the white horse not horse paradox and the ultimate unspeakable paradox to the liar paradox in view of the principle of noncontradiction
topic double reference
pre-theoretic “way-things-are-capturing” understanding of truth
relative identity
semantic paradoxes (showing/involving genuine or alleged contradictions)
url https://doi.org/10.1515/opphil-2025-0069
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