The Problem of Meaning

THE PROBLEM OF MEANING I Yl'f ,, HE English word " meaning " has a peculiar ambiguity which has been to a considerable extent the source of confusion in the many studies :recently published on "meaning." The lack of any precision of the word" meaning," of any rigor method by way of attacking the problem, and even of full comprehension of what the problem of meaning embraces, seems to be the most prominent characteristic of many contemporary writers. VVe at least have to know what they mean even if we are trying to find out the meaning of "meaning " This can happen only if they make known to us in some way what they are trying to impart. In many cases, these writers have failed badly in imparting what they intend us to understand by the problem of meaning. This is evident because of the apparent failure of these writers to communicate successfully with each other, and also because tangential issues frequently seem to be argued as though they were fundamentaL In several notable instances, the problem of meaning seems somewhat misconstrued since, in such cases, the analysis ously depends upon meaning and yet what is supposed to be sought is meaning itself" There is no question.that the peculiar nature of the problem contributes to such confusion; yet this, in turn, should suggest exceptional care and rigor in method and procedure. We should ask questions about meaning, and perhaps especially about the ambiguous word itself. Still, it seems there are some questions which need not be asked: for example, to ask whether a given word or sentence has meaning appears already to be a misconstruing of the problem" If words do not already presuppose meaning in some way, then linguistic endeavors to ascertain how they somehow come to acquire meaning are rather futile. It amounts to the same thing as examining a painting and then asking whether it represents 180 THE PROBLEM OF MEANING 181 anything or not. That wouldnot seem to be the problem; the problem would be since it is representative, how and what it represents. This would seem evident in any work of art, of. which language is an example. It appears, however, that we shall not appreciate the current problem of meaning unless we have somehow understood what it means to ask when words and sentences are meaningful and when they are not. The ambiguity is already tremendous here; nevertheless, this is the starting point in the present problem of meaning. On the other hand, we should credit these contemporary writers with raising difficulties about principles and elements that may not have been given sufficient attention and examination . We should welcome this opportunity to face questions and difficulties, since that is the necessary occasion for attaining a firmer grasp of the principles and elements which are needed. Now there certainly is, in a definite sense, a genuine problem of meaning. But the problem of meaning can be easily misconceived if it is based principally upon the ambiguity of the oral and written mediums which convey meaning. And when the problem is based on a medium of expression as completely ambiguous as the word " meaning," such a problem can only raise a host of other difficulties, largely fruitless and unnecessary . This has happened, in part, in the current formulation of the problem of meaning. In general, it seems accurate to say that contemporary writers suppose that the essence of the problem is the ambiguity of the verbal or oral signs of meaning , or even the mere verbal or oral signs of meaning as such. We shall, then, first have to make a brief survey of some of the current contributions to the problem of meaning in an endeavor to locate what they encompass. Then we shall have to examine dialectically the main points that are there proposed. A general, though brief, survey of the problem along this line seems to have been made by Mr. Leo Abraham in an article he wrote entitled" Theory of Meaning." 1 After distinguishing five general ways of treating the problem of meaning in contem1 The Monist, July, 1936, p. ~~8 f'f. 182 JOHN A. OESTERLE porary writings, Mr. Abraham compiled a...