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Nāgārjuna and the Philosophy of Language

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Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine some of the key points of Nāgārjuna’s discussion of problems relating to the philosophy of language. We will focus on two works from Nāgārjuna’s yukti-corpus that address these matters most explicitly, the Vigrahavyāvartanī (VV) and the Vaidalyaprakaraṇa (VP). The discussion will concentrate on four topics: Nāgārjuna’s views on semantics, the problem of empty names, the relation between language and momentariness, and the implications of Madhyamaka views on parts and wholes for the existence of language.

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  1. Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford, Norham Gardens, Oxford, OX2 6QA, UK

    Jan Westerhoff

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  1. Jan Westerhoff
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Correspondence to Jan Westerhoff.

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Westerhoff, J. Nāgārjuna and the Philosophy of Language. J Indian Philos 47, 779–793 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10781-017-9341-3

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