Write a 450 word summary and report of this week’s work in our class. Use the following structure for your summary assignment, and be sure to number your paragraphs and provide transitions for all but the introductory paragraph so the summary flows.
1. Introduction to the summary assignment: What will you cover in this summary. What was the week’s overall topic? (Hint: Truth-preservation is the theme for our course! Frege provided a truth-preserving argument (identity puzzle) for the claim that meaning isn’t (entirely) reference. Putnam provided a truth-preserving argument (Twin-Earth) that meanings aren’t subjective. Tarski presented the liar paradox is the form of a truth-preserving argument )
2. Report on your academic progress in the course: How did you studies go this week? What did you enjoy learning about? What challenges did you face?
3. What author did you post on in the forum: say so here! Choose an author you did not post on to summarize here. Here is a transition suggestion, using Frege as illustration: “Now that I’ve reported on my progress let me turn to summarizing the author I want to summarize, Frege.” In your summary of the author say what the author’s main thesis is, and how the author supported this thesis.
4. Choose another author you did not post on to summarize here. Provide a nice transition from the author you summarized in 3 to the one here by connecting the two by common content. In your summary of the author say what the author’s main thesis is, and how the author supported this thesis.
5. Conclusion to the summary: Briefly recap your summary assignment. Possible questions to answer: Did any of these topics this week attract your interest? Language and meaning, definition, and argument? Can you see how studying these notions could help you in any field? Next week we focus on language and meaning. Do you have thoughts about what these are from the point of view of critical thinking?