Philosophy of Religion Research

Evans' Causal Theory of Names and its Objections

Editorial

Author

PhD Student of Analytic Philosophy, Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

In this article, I provide a brief form of some important theories of name's denotation and then I focus on Evans' causal theory of names. Since Evans' theory is inherited by causal and descriptive theories, a brief acquaintance with these both theories will be helpful. When discussing descriptivist theories, I will examine Frege and Russell's views briefly, and when discussing causal theories I will focus on Kripke and Mill's theories in reference of proper names. I show some faults in Kripke's theory and then I refer to the problem of change of reference. After explication of Evans' causal theory and its difference and its advantage over Kripke's causal theory, I will explicate some critical points concerning his theory.

Keywords

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Philosophy of Religion Research
Volume 7, Issue 1 - Serial Number 1
May 2009
Pages 107-130