Date: Thu, 13 Nov 1997 22:45:38 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <199711140345.WAA02566@locke.ccil.org> Reply-To: Rick Nylander Sender: Lojban list From: Rick Nylander Subject: Re: Ironic Use of Attitudinals X-To: Lojban list To: John Cowan Status: OR X-Mozilla-Status: 0011 Content-Length: 1188 X-From-Space-Date: Thu Nov 13 22:49:41 1997 X-From-Space-Address: LOJBAN@CUVMB.CC.COLUMBIA.EDU Since we're dealing with a "logical language"... 1. Irony (as proposed) is the use of a word to mean it's opposite. [definition] Therefore: To be understood, an ironic term must be understood by the listener to be false. Refgram - chap 13, sec 2: >Attitudinals make no claim: they are expressions of attitude, not of facts or alleged facts. As a result, >attitudinals themselves have no truth value, nor do they directly affect the truth value of a bridi that >they modify. 1. To be understood, an ironic term must be understood by the listener to be false. [as above] 2. Attitudinals have no truth value. [refgram - chap. 13, sec 2] 3. Since attitudinals have no truth value, they can not be understood by the listener to be false. Therefore: attitudinals can not be used ironically. As a syllogism: 1. All ironic terms are terms which can be understood by the listener to be false. 2. All attitudinals are not terms which can be understood by the listener to be false. 3. Therefore: all attitudinals are not ironic terms. - Rick "I think, therefore I can't chew gum" Nylander (Boy, am I about to catch it for this.)