Download Indexicality and Rigidity: Understanding the Meaning of 'Water' in Different Worlds and more Study notes Introduction to Philosophy in PDF only on Docsity! Indexicality and Rigidity The Twin Earth water example did not involve a division in labor, but it involves other things which are of fundamental importance to the theory of reference and to the theory of necessary truth. Specifically, it involves the notions of (1) rigidity and (2) indexicality. RIGIDITY Thought Experiment Four: This Is Water in W1 and W2 Let W1 and W2 be two possible worlds in which I exist and in which this glass exists and in which I am giving a meaning explanation by pointing at the glass and saying “This is water.” Suppose that in W1 the glass is filled with H20 and that in W2 it is filled with XYZ. Interpretation One (424) 1) One might hold that ‘water’ was world-relative but constant in meaning (i.e. the word has a constant relative meaning). On this theory, ‘water’ means the same in W1 and W2; it’s just that water is H20 in W1 and water is XYZ in W2. Interpretation Two (424) 2) One might hold that water is H20 in all worlds (the stuff called “water” in W2 isn’t water), but ‘water’ doesn’t have the same meaning in W1 and W2. If what was said in the Twin Earth example is correct, then Interpretation 2 is correct. We can express this in Kripke’s words by saying that “water” is rigid. (424) When I give the ostensive definition “this is water” the word “this” is rigid. SIMILARITIES TO INDEXICALS (426) Natural kind terms are like indexicals because (1) in both cases it does not appear that intension determines extension (2) in both cases there appears to be an ostensive element REASON 1 For indexicals, such as the word “I” (and other pronouns), the same word has different extensions in different contexts. That is, the same word can be used to refer to different objects when used in different contexts. When Sam uses the word “I” the extension is Sam, when I use the word “I” the extension is Patti. Thus we cannot say that intension determines extension. It appears that ‘water’ is like indexicals in that there can be a mismatch between the intension and the extension of the term REASON 2 Even though ‘water’ denotes rigidly, what it denotes is water only if it is similar to the stuff that is ‘water’ in the actual world. “Water is stuff that bears a certain similarity relation to the water around here.” (426) Indexicals are also ostensive – involves pointing at the referent -- (and that’s where the variety of extension comes from). Conclusion: Words like water have an unnoticed indexical component.
