Empty Names, Semantics, and the A Priori

Abstract

The second of our two tasks is to find a solution to Russell’s Problem. Russell’s Problem as presented in the Introduction is the problem of empty proper names. To solve the problem we must provide an account, within the direct reference theory, of beliefs and propositions that are expressed by sentences containing nondenoting proper names. While Russell’s Problem is a problem for any theory of names, it seems to represent a particularly difficult problem for the the direct reference theory. On the direct reference theory the primary semantic function of a name is to denote an object and sentences containing names express propositions that involve the object denoted. The problem is: what propositions are expressed by sentences that contain empty or nondenoting names?