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Empty names, hallucinations, and semantics
Fred Adams1,*, Andrew Jackson1
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1
Department of Linguistics & Cognitive Science, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716, USA
*Correspondence: fa@udel.edu (Fred Adams)
Front. Biosci. (Schol Ed) 2021, 13(1), 82–96;
https://doi.org/10.52586/S554
Submitted: 1 May 2018 | Accepted: 17 February 2021 | Published: 30 June 2021
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Synesthesia, hallucination and mental disorders)
Copyright: © 2021 The Author(s). Published by BRI.
This is an open access article under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Abstract
In this paper we introduce the problem space of the intersection of hallucinatory experiences and hallucinatory thoughts involving empty names. We recount a brief history of the theory of names. We select and defend a direct reference theory of names. We then apply that theory to cases of hallucination. We show how our theory can explain intentional behavior involving empty names and hallucinatory experiences. We then consider several theories that offer alternative accounts to ours. We critically evaluate those alternatives in relation to our view and defend our view.
Keywords
Empty names
Hallucinations
Thought content
Reference
Hallucinatory experience
Experiential content