This book presents an innovative and novel approach to linguistic semantics, beginning with the idea that language can be described as a system for the expression of linguistic Meanings as particular surface forms or Texts.

Kedrov has reminded us that the development of knowledge proceeds from appearance to essence. That was also true of the development of notions about space and time. Leibniz, for example, defined space as the order of things existing at the same time. However, that definition is rather superficial, and it is only the development of physics, specifically relativity theory, which made it possible to penetrate more deeply into the nature of space and time and to ascribe a precise and mathematically (...) expressible notion to the well-known judgment to the effect that space and time are forms of the existence of matter. (shrink)

The book defines the concept of Semantic-Communicative Structure [= Sem-CommS]-a formal object that is imposed on the starting Semantic Structure [= SemS] of a sentence (under text synthesis) in order to turn the selected meaning into a linguistic message. The Sem-CommS is a system of eight logically independent oppositions: 1. Thematicity (Rheme vs. Theme), 2. Givenness (Given vs. Old), 3. Focalization (Focalized vs. Non-Focalized), 4. Perspective (Foregrounded vs. Backgrounded), 5. Emphasis (Emphasized vs. Non-Emphasized), 6. Presupposedness (Presupposed vs. Non-Presupposed), 7. Unitariness (...) (Unitary vs. Articulated), 8. Locutionality (Communicated vs. Signaled). The values of these oppositions mark particular subnetworks of the starting SemS and thus allow for the distinction between sentences such as (a) A man killed a dog vs. The dog was killed by a man, (b) John washed the window vs. It was John who washed the window or (c) It hurts! vs. Ouch! The proposed Sem-Comm-oppositions are conceived as an attempt at sharpening the well-known notions of Topic Comment, Focus, etc. Possible linguistic strategies for expressing the values of the Sem-Comm-oppositions in different languages are discussed at some length, with linguistic illustrations. (shrink)

The work is carried out in line with the Russian dialectology of the German language. Its relevance comes from the fact that it is devoted to one of the territorial forms of German, which was never before linguistically studied. The authors of the paper conducted the field work in the territory of Novosibirsk region and collected data that allow analyzing the language situation of the Germans residing there. In the proposed article, the first results of this analysis are presented, which (...) give an idea of the main social and linguistic characteristics of the native forms of the German language in Novosibirsk region. In particular, the main components of the linguistic situation of the ethnoterritorial community under consideration are identified, the communicative power of each component is described, and the dialect identification of the native forms of the German language in the surveyed region is carried out. When modeling the language situation of the Germans of Novosibirsk region, the phenomena caused by interlingual contacting are emphasized. The authors show that on the territory of Novosibirsk region there are German idioms long staying outside the main continuum of German language and representing unique language formations. These language formations show signs of West Central German, and also includes phenomena caused by language interference. The simulated language situation is characterized as unbalanced - the demographic and communicative capacities of German dialects in the region under consideration are much lower than those of languages with majority status. It is noted that the demographic and communicative capacities of the described territorial forms of German language are in the process of a rapid decline. (shrink)

How can criminal punishment be morally justified? Zisman addresses this classical question in legal philosophy. He provides two maybe surprising answers to the question. First, as for a methodological claim, it argues that this question cannot be answered by philosophers and legal scholars alone. Rather, we need to take into account research from social psychology, economy, anthropology, and so on in order to properly analyze the arguments in defense of criminal punishment. Second, the book argues that when such research is (...) properly accounted for, none of the current attempts to justify criminal punishment succeed. But that does not imply that the state should do nothing about criminal wrongdoing. Rather, the arguments that were supposed to justify criminal punishment actually speak in favor of an alternative approach to criminal law: restitution to the victim and restorative justice. That is to say, the state should coerce offenders to provide restitution for the harm inflicted on victims, and whenever possible restorative approaches should be taken to address criminal wrongdoing. (shrink)

Criminal law abolitionists claim that legal punishment cannot be morally justified and that we should therefore abolish criminal law. While this is still a minority position in the current debate, the number of proponents has been increasing, and even opponents have developed a certain degree of sympathy for such claims in recent years. Yet one of the reasons many remain hesitant regarding the abolition of criminal law appears to be the lack of a thought-through alternative, in addition to abolitionists disagreeing (...) considerably amongst themselves on what an alternative should look like. I will call this the missing alternative objection. To address this central concern, I will argue in this paper that the most prominent versions of abolitionism actually converge on the same alternative core to criminal law — even though they are driven by vastly different motivations. This core that current abolitionist theories converge on is two-fold: first, the claim that the state should compel offenders to provide restitution for the victim; second, the claim that restorative processes should be used wherever possible when addressing criminal wrongdoing. This common core is enough to reject the missing alternative objection. (shrink)

Ioulia Podoroga | : Dans cet article, je pose le problème des rapports entre philosophie et littérature à partir du cas de Boris Pasternak, dont la vie et l’oeuvre permettent d’envisager une nouvelle articulation entre les deux disciplines, en mobilisant un schème paradoxalement hégélien. Schème hégélien, car fait de trois mouvements, de sa pratique musicale vers la philosophie pour aboutir à une relève dans la poésie. Mais schème anti-hégélien, parce que la triade hégélienne est inversée : la philosophie est (...) le moyen-terme, mais qui reste central, dans l’acheminement vers l’accomplissement du système par la poésie. | : In this article I raise the problem of the relationship between philosophy and literature basing it on the case-study of Boris Pasternak’s writings, whose life and work enable us to envisage a new linkage between the two disciplines by mobilizing a paradoxically Hegelian scheme. Hegelian scheme because of its three movements : from his musical practice towards poetry via philosophy. But anti-Hegelian scheme, because the Hegelian triad is reversed : philosophy is the medium-term but still central in the movement towards the completion of the system by poetry. (shrink)

In recent years, a number of philosophers and social scientists have argued in favor of or against retributive theories of criminal punishment based on empirical findings about folk punitive judgment and decision-making. In this paper, we will argue that these arguments do not succeed. We will raise two objections. First, there are serious gaps between the empirical findings these authors cite and the descriptive premises these findings are meant to support. Second, in many cases, the existing research does not support (...) the specific empirical claims that feature in these arguments. Specifically, a large part of the existing psychological research and some philosophers claim that people are mainly driven by retributive motives. We will show that a large portion of the empirical research is not designed in a way to specifically test this claim, and to the extent that some studies are able to investigate this claim, we show that the evidence suggests that people are motivated by a variety of concerns, including consequentialist motives. We discuss possible responses and implications for the philosophy of criminal punishment, and provide suggestions for improved study designs. (shrink)

Because of the transcendental emphasis of his critical works, Immanuel Kant has been criticised for not being able to accommodate the notion of multiplicity. This paper outlines a complex argument designed as a means to the rescue of Kant from this repudiation. To this end, the paper proposes a new, strong reading of the doctrine of aesthetic ideas that unveils the idiosyncratic play of the mental powers, constituted of two separate acts, that equips one to intuit an unnameable mark that (...) evades both empirical apprehension and logical comprehension. By analogy with the two types of cognition, stipulated in the Stufenleiter (and elsewhere), I shall suggest that the two distinct kinds of a feeling of pleasure, stirred up by the generation of an aesthetic idea, add an overlooked, aesthetic element that renders Kant a philosopher of multiplicity. (shrink)

This book-length essay introduces and discusses main theoretical positions the author uses in his study of Russian literature of the 19th and 20th centuries. It offers new original approaches, in particular the systematic analysis of anthropological foundations that determine how the idea of the Work is being formed. The author focuses on the specific literary tradition going from Nikolai Gogol, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Andrei Bely to Andrey Platonov and Oberiu, the group represented by such names as Alexander Vvedensky, Daniil Kharms, (...) Yakov Druskin, Leonid Lipavsky, and Konstantin Vaginov. (shrink)

Cet article aborde la façon dont l’histoire des idées peut mettre en évidence la perméabilité des frontières entre littérature et philosophie. Comment appréhender la spécificité d’une idée présente dans un roman mais dont la portée est aussi philosophique? Sur l’exemple de l’idée de nihilisme, élaborée dans le contexte intellectuel russe, l’article explore sa capacité à donner naissance à la fois à un concept sociopolitique et à une image littéraire, comme à deux tentatives, tantôt complémentaires, tantôt contradictoires, de penser un seul (...) et même problème. (shrink)

Согласно тем истолкованиям Достоевского, которые предложены Бахтиным, голос предполагает диалог и тем самым участие сознания, а также смысла; этим путем мы приходим к личности. Однако эта интерпретация оставляет в стороне - уже у самого Достоевского - другие существенные моменты: например, спонтанныешумы и особенно слушание. Следовало бы также более внимательно исследовать отношения между диалогом и встречей. Selon Bakhtine interprétant Dostoïevski, la voix implique le dialogue et par là l’intervention de la conscience, et aussi le sens ; on arrive ainsi à la (...) personne. Mais cette interprétation laisse de côté, même chez Dostoïevski, d’autres moments essentiels : par exemple les bruits spontanés et surtout l'écoute. Il faudrait en outre faire une analyse plus juste des rapports du dialogue et de la rencontre. According to Bakhtin interpreting Dostoyevsky, voice implies dialogue and hence the intervention of consciousness , and also meaning; therefore, we are led to consider the person. But this interpretation overlooks, even in Dostoyevsky, other key moments: for instance, spontaneous noises, and especially listening. A more accurate analysis should be made of the relationships between dialogue and encounter. (shrink)