哲学如何依赖类比——以是与真为例

Being and True:As Examples of How Philosophy Relies on Analogy

以是与真为核心话题的哲学语言,即形而上学与分析哲学的语言,向来以追求精确著称。但这两个概念本身,追溯到亚里士多德和弗雷格,却是以类比这种非精确的方式登上哲学的舞台:一是亚里士多德关于谓述词项的类比,一是弗雷格关于表达式涵义的类比,它们不是用于精确地说明是与真,而是令这两个概念成为可谈论的话题。因此为概念提供充分的哲学说明,不仅是在某种哲学语言内精确释义,更应该考虑在特定哲学语言被确立之前,类比如何为哲学输送话题。也就是说,在决定某种哲学语言是否言之有物的语义层面,哲学的思考首先依赖类比。

Philosophical language of metaphysics and analytical philosophy,whose key issues are being and true,has always been known for its pursuit of accuracy.However,if tracing back to Aristotle and Frege,this two concepts had appeared on the scene of philosophical research through a way with little accuracy,namely analogy.Neither Aristotle’s analogies of predicate nor Frege’s analogies of expression had intended to explain being or true accurately,but to make these two concepts subjects of philosophical research.Thus,to provide concepts sufficient philosophical illustrations is not only for stating their significance accurately,but also for providing topics that could be discussed before a particular philosophical language is established.In other words,on semantic level that determine whether a philosophical language really has something to say,philosophical thinking depends first and foremost on analogies.