Abstract

In the following essay I consider three intuitively plausible theses concerning the meanings of our mental states: that meaning is determined in part by our relation to the world, that our mental states in some sense represent their meanings, and that the thinker is the most likely authority over the meanings of at least some of her mental states. I argue that these three theses may not be simultaneously satisfied, and suggest that each of the three major types of meaning theories must deny at least one of them. I then scrutinize a representative theory of each type, in order to determine why one might deny one of the three plausible assumptions. I conclude with abbreviated remarks on the most promising avenue for further research