The Minimalist Conception of Truth and Philosophy of Science: Ajdukiewicz’s Account of Scientific Inquiry. In: A. Rojszczak, J. Cachro, and G. Kurczewski (Eds.), Philosophical Dimensions of Logic and Science, Kluwer Academic Publishers 2003, 251-266.

Abstract

In this paper, I consider Ajdukiewicz's theory of meaning as a form of deflationism. This theory was formulated in the thirties and was published in two articles: Sprache und Sinn and Das Veltbild und die Begriffsapparatur. My paper is intended as not only a historical study. Above all I want to interpret some aspects of Ajdukiewicz's construction as a theoretical model of deflationary ideas concerning science. I believe that this will help in examining the capacity of the deflationary account to accommodate some important facts regarding rationality and scientific development. The paper consists of five parts. In the first, I introduce some terminological conventions regarding the use of the terms semantics and theory of language. In the second, I present the deflationary view as a conjunction of a few theses. In the next, I relate Ajdukiewicz's theory, identifying deflationary aspects of it. In the fourth part I examine a possible alternative interpretation of the theory in question as a form of antirealism. I believe this might explain why deflationism is sometimes regarded as a sophisticated kind of antirealism. In the last, critical part, I indicate some limits of the deflationary account of scientific development.