Comparative Study Of Description Theory And Causal-historical Theory Of Names

Theory of Name plays an important role in Philosophy of language. The theory of names divides into two schools: Description theory and Causal-historical Theory. The representative figures of Description Theory are Frege, Russell and so on. They thought that all names have meanings which equal the descriptions related to the same object. The relation between name and reality is set up by a group of descriptions. And this relation is indirect. The representative figures of Causal-historical Theory are Kripke and Putnam. They thought that all names are pure indicating names. They have no meaning but reference which is defined by a historical chain. This reference needs no medium. The relation between name and reality is a direct one.The Description Theory and Causal-historical Theory both have the reasonable aspects and the disadvantages. Description Theory researches the name from the view of the cognitive subject. It thought the meaning of a name refers to a group of descriptions but ignore the social functions of a name. Causal-historical Theory has noticed that the influence of social factor to the language and the effect of Causal-historical chain to the reference of proper name. But it loses the sight of the indispensable meaning which is formed in the history. Comparing with the two theories, it is important to integrate them after finding out their advantages. It is significant not only for comprehending the relation between name and reality, but also for solving the problem of the meaning of names.