Skip to main content

Specific, Yet Opaque

  • Conference paper

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNAI,volume 6042))

Abstract

In her dissertation, Janet Fodor has argued that the quantificational force and the intensional status of certain quantifier phrases can be evaluated independently. The proposal was only halfway accepted: the existence of non-specific transparent readings is well-established today, but specific opaque readings are deemed illusory. I argue that they are real and outline a semantic framework that can generate them. The idea is to permit two types of quantifier raising: one that carries the restrictor of the determiner along and another that does not. When the second is applied the restrictor can be stranded within the scope of an intensional operator as the quantificational determiner itself takes wider scope.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Buying options

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD   54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  1. Abusch, D.: The scope of indefinites. Natural Language Semantics 2, 83–135 (1994)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Bäuerle, R.: Pragmatisch-semantische aspekte der NP-interpretattion. In: Faust, M., Harweg, R., Lehfeldt, W., Wienold, G. (eds.) Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft, Sprachtypolofie und Textlinguistik: Festschrift für Peter Hratmann, pp. 121–131. Narr, Tübingen (1983)

    Google Scholar 

  3. von Fintel, K., Heim, I.: Intensional Semantics. Lecture Notes (2008), http://mit.edu/fintel/IntensionalSemantics.pdf

  4. Fodor, J.: The Linguistic Description of Opaque Contexts. PhD thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1970)

    Google Scholar 

  5. Heim, I., Kratzer, A.: Semantics in Generative Grammar. Blackwell, Oxford (1998)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Ioup, G.: Some universal for quantifier scope. Syntax and Semantics 4, 37–58 (1975)

    Google Scholar 

  7. Keshet, E.: Good Intensions: Paving Two Roads to a Theory of the De Re/De Dicto Distinction. PhD thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2008)

    Google Scholar 

  8. Parsons, T.: Events in the Semantics of English. MIT Press, Cambridge (1990)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Percus, O.: Constraints on some other variables in syntax. Natural Language Semantics 8, 173–229 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Szabó, Z.G.: Counting across times. Philosophical Perspectives 20, 399–426 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Szabó, Z.G.: Things in progress. Philosophical Perspectives 22, 499–525 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Zucchi, S.: Incomplete events, intensionality, and imperfective aspect. Natural Language Semantics 7, 179–215 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this paper

Cite this paper

Szabó, Z.G. (2010). Specific, Yet Opaque. In: Aloni, M., Bastiaanse, H., de Jager, T., Schulz, K. (eds) Logic, Language and Meaning. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 6042. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-14287-1_4

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-14287-1_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-14286-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-14287-1

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics