Psychologism

This article develops Frege's conception of answerability, and his correlative views on psychologism of the first sort. Compared to prior philosophers, such as British empiricists, Frege is a minimalist in the demands he sets on answerability. If he is ever less than minimalist, that is something that flows out of his particular conception of logic. The article then turns to Wittgenstein's (last) conception of answerability, by which Frege is not quite minimalist enough. That allows us to see how the pursuit of answerability might lead to psychologism of the second kind.

This article develops Frege's conception of answerability, and his correlative views on psychologism of the first sort. Compared to prior philosophers, such as British empiricists, Frege is a minimalist in the demands he sets on answerability. If he is ever less than minimalist, that is something that flows out of his particular conception of logic. The article then turns to Wittgenstein's (last) conception of answerability, by which Frege is not quite minimalist enough. That allows us to see how the pursuit of answerability might lead to psychologism of the second kind.