Dear Carnap, Dear Van: The Quine-Carnap Correspondence and Related Work PDF
Preview Dear Carnap, Dear Van: The Quine-Carnap Correspondence and Related Work
The Quine-Carnap Correspondence and Related Work W.V. Quine and Rudolf Carnap Edited, with an Introduction by Richard Creath Dear Carnap, Dear Van Rudolf Carnap and W. V. Quine, two of the twentieth century's most important philoso phers, corresponded at length—and over a long period of time—on matters personal, professional, and philosophical. Their friendship encompassed issues and disa greements that go to the heart of contempo rary philosophic discussions. Carnap (1891- 1970) was a founder and leader of the logical positivist school. The younger Quine (1908- ) began as a staunch admirer of Car nap's ideas but diverged from him increas ingly over questions in the analysis of meaning and the justification of belief. Yet the two remained close, relishing their dif ferences through years of correspondence. Their letters, presented in full for the first time, reveal both the originality of their thought and the strength of their friendship. Quine's conflict with Carnap culminated most memorably in his assault on one of the "dogmas of empiricism," the analytic- synthetic distinction. This attack has often been cited as a foundation of the argument that no universal standard of rationally de monstrable truth exists, and that all scientific theories contain some undemonstrable and historically determined elements. A previ ously unknown reply by Carnap to Quine's influential "Two Dogmas of Empiricism” is included in this volume. "Quine on Ana lyticity," as it is called, is one of several valu able supplements to the correspondence. Others are Quine's celebrated "Lectures on Carnap" of 1934, which introduced Carnap's philosophy to the American audience, and his "Homage to Carnap." Together they am plify the central issues and deepen our un derstanding of the philosophers' thought. A CENTENNIAL BOOK One hundred books published between 1990 and 1995 bear this special imprint of the University of California Press. We have chosen each Centennial Book as an example of the Press's finest publishing and bookmaking traditions as we celebrate the beginning of our second century. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS Founded in 1893 [DEAR CARNAP, DEAR VAN] Ina and Rudolf Carnap, Prague, 1933. The Quine-Carnap Correspondence and Related Work W.V. Quine and Rudolf Carnap Edited, with an Introduction by Richard Creath University of California Press Berkeley • Los Angeles • London Photographs of W. V* Quine and Ina and Rudolf Carnap courtesy of the Archives of Scientific Philosophy, University of Pittsburgh University of California Press Berkeley and Los Angeles, California University of California Press Oxford, England Copyright © 1990 by The Regents of the University of California Library of Congress Cataloging-in*Publication Data Carnap, Rudolf, 1891-1970, Dear Carnap, dear Van : the Quine-Camap correspondence and other material / edited and with an introduction by Richard Creath* p* cm. ISBN 0-510-06847-5 1. Analysis (Philosophy) 2. Logic. 3. Justification (Theory of knowledge) 4. Catnap, Rudolf, 1891-1970—Correspondence. 5. Quine, W. V. (Willard Van Orman)—Correspondence. I. Quine, W V (Willard Van Orman) IL Creath, Richard, III, Title. 8808,5.038 1990 191—dczo 90-40111 C1P Printed in the United States of America 1^3456789 The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI £39.48-1984 ® [C O N TEN TS] Preface, vii Acknowledgments, xiii Introduction, i LECTURES ON CARNAP / BY W. V. QUINE Lecture 1: The A Priori, Lecture II: Syntax, 68 Lecture III: Philosophy as Syntax, 87 THE QUINE-CARNAP CORRESPONDENCE 105 QUINE ON ANALYTICITY / BY RUDOLF CARNAP 427 THE QUINE-CARNAP CORRESPONDENCE (CONTINUED) 433 HOMAGE TO RUDOLF CARNAP / BY W. V. QUINE 463 Index, 467
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