SEM: Conditionals

3 Credits · Level: Graduate

Sentences of the form 'if A then B' ('Conditionals') are anything but rare and play an important role in language. Their meaning raises some interesting questions, however. Some that will be discussed in this class are: How can we actually have judgments about the meaning and veracity of conditionals when they are often about hypothetical, sometimes even counterfactual situations? What instances of A are relevant when we interpret B and which do we safely set aside? How do conditionals behave in different environments, e.g. under negation? And, finally, how come 'if A then B' is often to taken to mean 'if A then B' and 'If not A then not B'. Prerequisite for this class is Semantics and Pragmatics 1 or equivalent.