Keith S. Donnellan

Speaking of Nothing

Russell tells us in ‘On Denoting’ to test our logical theories by their ‘capacity for dealing with puzzles’.1 In this paper I raise the question of how a theory of reference, one of recent origin, might handle one of the major puzzles Russell mentioned. The theory of reference that I have in mind — and one I subscribe to — I will call ‘the historical explanation theory’. (It, or ones similar to it in important respects, has also been called the ‘causal theory’. For various reasons, I prefer a different title.2)