Here is the title and the abstract of the talk next week (see the other details below):
***
Title: Naturalizing Gricean Communication: An Intentional Stance Approach
Speaker: Ronald J. Planer (University of Wollongong)
Abstract:
Many theorists of language origins now view language as a cultural-evolutionary product of
the human capacity for Gricean communication. However, basically no attention has been
paid by these theorists to the naturalistic credentials of Grice's model of
communication. The crux of the problem is that Grice's model is steeped in
folk-psychological terms, and yet the question of how to locate folk-psychological states
and their properties within a scientific-naturalistic worldview has proven to be among the
most recalcitrant in the whole of the philosophy of mind and psychology. In this talk, I
develop one way we might attempt to settle this theoretical debt by showing how Gricean
communication - and, by extension, public language items - can be naturalized using
Dennett's intentional stance theory of folk psychology. I then consider an important
challenge to the proposed naturalization pathway. Put simply, the challenge concerns the
possibility of residual intentional properties at the level of subpersonal cognitive
mechanisms. I conclude by distinguishing three lines of response that remain open to a
proponent of my version of naturalism about Gricean communication and language.
***
On 21/11/2025, at 10:48, Gyorgyne Finta <Szabor(a)ceu.edu> wrote:
The CEU Department of Cognitive Science cordially invites you to the following talk by:
Ronald Planer (University of Wollongong)<https://scholars.uow.edu.au/ronald-planer>
Date: Wednesday, November 26, 2025
Time: 4 pm (to 5:30 pm) CET
Venue: D001 (QS Vienna) and Zoom:
https://ceu-edu.zoom.us/j/92670851861?pwd=kIgYbPv4fbLuK8opQcyVyOaapAgVpW.1&…
Meeting ID: 926 7085 1861
Passcode: 898270
Chair: Gergely Csibra
Title: TBA
Ronald Planer received his PhD in Philosophy from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, in
2015. His doctoral research was in the philosophy of science, with a special focus on the
biological and cognitive sciences, particularly where those fields overlap. The character
of Ron’s current research might be described as the philosophy of human nature: it is
aimed at understanding—and ideally developing testable models of—the biocultural evolution
of some of the most fundamental aspects of human beings; for example, our linguistic
abilities, our social-cognitive abilities, and our moral and political attitudes. Ron
takes a highly interdisciplinary approach to this research, incorporating and using ideas
from anthropology, archaeology, primatology, neuroscience, linguistics, computer science,
and other fields. His work has appeared in some of the very best philosophy and science
journals, such as Biology and Philosophy, Biological Theory, Current Anthropology, Mind
and Language, and The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science. In 2021, Ron
completed his first book (co-authored with Professor Kim Sterelny), entitled From Signal
to Symbol: The Evolution of Language (MIT Press). More broadly, Ron remains interested in
core debates in the philosophy of mind, philosophy of psychology, philosophy of language,
and philosophy of science.
Let Mariem know, please, if you would like to schedule a meeting with the speaker.
Best,
Reka
------------------------------------------------------------------------
GYÖRGYNÉ FINTA (RÉKA)
DEPARTMENT COORDINATOR
DEPARTMENT OF COGNITIVE SCIENCE
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<image001.jpg>
CEU GMBH – CEU CENTRAL EUROPEAN UNIVERSITY PRIVATE UNIVERSITY
Quellenstrasse 51, A-1100 Wien, Room B502
OFFICE: +43 125230 5138
cognitivescience.ceu.edu<https://cognitivescience.ceu.edu/>|
www.ceu.edu<http://www.ceu.edu/>
SEE CEU STORY:
www.youtube.com/ceuhungary<http://www.youtube.com/ceuhungary>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CEU is committed to energy and environmental sustainability
www.ceu.hu/sustainability<http://www.ceu.hu/sustainability>
[
https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4wJmntYV9xI46HE4vvhea1QVsjj…]
Please, consider your environmental responsibility. Before printing this e-mail message,
ask yourself whether you really need a hard copy.
______________________________________________
Subscribe by sending an empty mail to
talks-subscribe@cogsci.ceu.edu<mailto:talks-subscribe@cogsci.ceu.edu>
Unsubscribe by sending an empty mail to
talks-unsubscribe@cogsci.ceu.edu<mailto:talks-unsubscribe@cogsci.ceu.edu>
______________________________________________
Subscribe by sending an empty mail to talks-subscribe(a)cogsci.ceu.edu
Unsubscribe by sending an empty mail to talks-unsubscribe(a)cogsci.ceu.edu