The Basics

This book provides beginners with a sense of the questions and methods that make up the philosophy of language. The first four chapters develop the idea that language is a system that allows us to exchange information with each other, and the second four chapters explore the idea that language is a tool we can use to perform actions, like promising, insulting, and socially positioning ourselves.

The first part of the book traces an arc connecting questions like:

• What is language?
• Where does meaning come from?
• How do we use meanings to send messages to each other?

The second part of the book takes up questions like:

• Does pornography silence women?
• What is offensive about slurs?
• What do we lose when languages go extinct?

With a glossary of key terms, questions for reflection, and suggestions for further reading, Philosophy of Language: The Basics is the place to start for anyone who is curious about how high the seas of language rise.