Proof and assertion

Abstract

In this chapter, I shed light on the issues raised in the above chapter by providing an overview of the concepts of proof and assertion, both of which are central to inferentialist approaches to semantics. In so doing, I shall argue that, in contrast to the prescriptive and monological approach to logic that underlies the problems discussed in the previous chapter, we should think of both proof and assertion in a much more liberal way. In brief, the suggestion is that, to take seriously the dictum that “meaning is determined by use” requires us to provide an account of the processes of our proving activities, which take place in the context of assertion games.