Quantification in dynamic semantics
In dynamic semantics three different styles of quantification
have been proposed that can be seen to involve two different ways of
interpreting free or quantified variables:
- Variables as denoting a single indefinite partial object;
- Variables as ranging over a number of alternative definite total objects.
I will show that the first view leads to problems of underspecification and
the second to problems of overspecification. I will propose a new style of
dynamic quantification in which variables are interpreted in a way which
avoids these problems:
- Variables as ranging over a number of definite partial objects (concepts).
By relativizing quantification to ways of conceptualizing the domain,
cardinality problems which arise if quantification is over concepts rather
than objetcs, are avoided.
Maria Aloni