LECTURE 7.1: AYER

Question 1

English philosopher from a rich family (Citroen car co.)

Answer 1

Alfred Jules Ayer (1910-1989)

Question 2

Where did Ayer study?

Answer 2

Eton College
University of Oxford
University of Vienna (logical positivism with Moritz Schlik)

Question 3

Served in the British intelligence special operations and MI6 in WWII

Answer 3

Ayer

Question 4

What was the 1st book that Ayer published at 24 years old?

Answer 4

“Language, Truth, and Logic”

Question 5

He was an anti-Vietnam war activist, supported the Labour Party, was Chairman of the Campaign Against Racial Discrimination in Sport, and former President of the Homosexual Law Reform Society in UK

Answer 5

Ayer

Question 6

4 TYPES OF SENTENCES

Answer 6

1. Interrogative
2. Imperative
3. Exclamatory
4. Declarative

Question 7

Only this type of sentence expresses a statement, with the element of truth or falsity (cognitive meaning)

Answer 7

Declarative

Question 8

Statements vs. Sentences

Answer 8

Statements - T/F
Sentences - merely uttered; no truth value

Question 9

When there are underlying assumptions that has not been proven or accepted, it is a fallacy of?

Answer 9

Fallacy of a complex question

Question 10

Direct perception paradigm

Answer 10

Empiricism

Question 11

Empiricism is by?

Answer 11

David Hume (1711-1776)

Question 12

HUME’S FORK (TWO MEANINGFUL TYPES OF STATEMENTS)

Answer 12

1. Relations of ideas (analytic statements)
2. Matters of fact (empirical statements)

Question 13

Type of statement based on reason

Answer 13

Relations of ideas (analytic statements)

Question 14

Type of statement based on experience or sense perception

Answer 14

Matters of fact (empirical statements)

Question 15

Association of ideas&raquo_space;> Habit and
custom&raquo_space;> ______ and ______

Answer 15

cause ; effect

Question 16

‘Tabula rasa’ - mind as the blank sheet is by?

Answer 16

John Locke

Question 17

‘Ese es percipi’ - to be is to be perceived is by?

Answer 17

George Berkeley

Question 18

An emotivist (Language, Truth, and Logic, 1936)

Answer 18

Alfred Jules Ayer

Question 19

The role of philosophy is the logical analysis of language

Answer 19

Logical Positivism

Question 20

Reason or Experience:
“That which is red is colored.”
“A puppy is a young dog.”
“2 x 5 = 10”

Answer 20

Reason

Question 21

Reason or Experience:
“The cat is on the mat.”
“The sun will rise tomorrow.”

Answer 21

Experience

Question 22

Reason or Experience:
Analytic Statement

Answer 22

Reason

Question 23

Reason or Experience:
Empirical Statement

Answer 23

Experience

Question 24

Reason or Experience:
Coherence (validation within the system)

Answer 24

Reason

Question 25

Reason or Experience:
Correspondence (verification with the state-of-affairs)

Answer 25

Experience

Question 26

Reason or Experience:
Formal Sciences (e.g. logic, math, geometry, etc.)

Answer 26

Reason

Question 27

Reason or Experience:
Empirical Sciences (e.g. biology, botany, physics, sociology, etc.)

Answer 27

Experience

Question 28

The denial of an analytic statement will lead to ____________/____________.

Answer 28

absurdity/contradiction

Question 29

Criterion of Verification in the theory of meaning

Answer 29

Denies the literal significance of any metaphysical propositions, including those that affirmed or denied the existence of God

Question 30

truths of reason - formal
matters of logic - a priori
truths of language - ‘is’ of identity

Answer 30

Analytic Statements

Question 31

truths of fact - synthetic
matters of fact - a posteriori

Answer 31

Empirical Statements

Question 32

Contains an assertion that is verifiable as either true or false (e.g. descriptive ethical symbols)

Answer 32

Cognitive Meaning

Question 33

To express and influence feelings and attitude; to evince the same feelings in others (e.g. normative ethical symbols)

Answer 33

Emotive Meaning

Question 34

Ayer: “Ethical concepts are ____________ and, therefore, unanalyzable.”

Answer 34

pseudo-concepts

Question 35

Ayer: “The presence of an _________ _________ in a proposition adds nothing to its factual content.”

Answer 35

ethical symbol

Question 36

Ayer: “It is only __________ ethical symbols and not descriptive ethical symbols, that are held by us to be indefinable in factual terms.”

Answer 36

normative

Question 37

Rudolf Carnap: “A ________ _________ is nothing else than a command in a misleading grammatical form. (e.g. “Cheating is wrong.”)

Answer 37

value statement