UNDERGRADUATE SEMINAR IN PHILOSOPHY:
THEORIES OF TRUTH

PHIL 402, Sec. 003: W 2pm-4pm in 1164 Angell Hall
The University of Michigan
Winter 2005




Instructor: James Woodbridge
email address: jwood@umich.edu
Course Webpage: http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jwood/umich/Phil402.htm
Office Hours: T 2pm-3:30pm, W 1pm-2pm, and by appointment
Office: 2200 Angell Hall
Office Phone: 615-6537
Dept. Phone: 764-6285


THIRD PAPER INSTALLMENT

Expand your Second Installment in the manner described below to produce an 12-15 page paper.

Your paper is due in the dropbox by 12:30pm on Thursday, April 28th.


The aim for the final installment of your paper is to incorporate discussion of deflationism about truth. You also have to read and discuss an article that was not part of the assigned reading for the class. This article can be on deflationism, but it could also be something about any of the theories of truth we have considered. The aim now is to generate a broad examination of the notion of truth and to argue for what you think is the best way to understand it. You have a paper examining inflationary accounts, so, after fixing that up, expand the introduction to include mention of the deflationary approach, including how it differs from inflationary views. Then, at the end of your fixed-up Second Installment, continue on with an explanation of deflationism that gets at the central ideas involved in that approach. Discuss problems the approach faces (see Alston, Devitt, and possibly Gupta or Horwich--if you read either of them) and what you think is the best version of deflationism (Strawson, Ramsey, Quine/Field, Horwich--if you read him). Finally, having considered various inflationary and deflationary accounts, decide what understanding of truth you think is best, and give reasons (including comparisons of different views' potentials for dealing with the challenges they face, and a comparative assessment of the challenges confronting them) for favoring this account over others. Regarding your additional article, where you incorporate it depends on what its focus is. You should think about what topic you want to do additional reading on, and then talk to me about article suggestions and how to incorporate discussion of the additional article into your paper.


Be sure to review my Paper Requirements and Policies.

Keep your paper within the page limit!