Explaining Russell’s Problems with Denoting Phrases Based on Muslim Philosophers’ Views
Subject Areas : Comparative studies in the field of history of philosophy
1 - PhD in philosophy, Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran
Keywords: Russell, analytical philosophy, denoting phrases, mental existence, Islamic philosophy, non-existent,
Abstract :
Bertrand Russell is considered to be one of the founders of analytic philosophy. Alongside Gottlob Frege and Ludwig Wittgenstein, he played a significant role in the development of this philosophical movement. Russell attempted to solve complex philosophical problems using mathematical logic and linguistic analysis. It seems that the words and concepts whose denotations pose an explanatory problem for analytic philosophers, especially Russell, have a precise solution in Islamic philosophy and logic. Although Russell recognized the importance of universals in epistemology and cognition, Muslim philosophers’ precise classifications of universals are absent in the works of figures like him. Western empiricist philosophy, due to its disregard for and denial of abstract universals, has been unable to provide a correct explanation for the correspondence of concepts with objects, which is the same problem that analytic philosophers, including Russell, have encountered. However, by presenting precise discussions on universal concepts and distinguishing them into primary intelligibles or secondary philosophical and logical intelligibles, Muslim philosophers have spoken about how these concepts correspond to and denote reality. Furthermore, by introducing the important topic of mental existence in epistemology, they have been able to provide some accurate explanations even for non-existent things and unreal objects; discussions that have often been overlooked by Russell and analytic philosophers.
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