Research On Logical Application Of Situation Semantics

Situation Semantics is a new semantic theory in 1980s which is built on situation theory. The founders are the famous American logician Barwise and Perry. Situation Semantics views the whole world as a collection that includes relation, object, characteristic, etc. These elements are interrelated and interdependent. So we can say the world is an organic entity. This paper compares the main differences between situation semantics and other theories in dealing with issues. It focuses on the characteristics of situation semantics and draws some relevant conclusions.This paper is divided into four parts:The first part is an overview of the basic elements of situation semantics and general applications. In dealing with the question of natural language significance, Barwise, who founded the theory of situation semantics, widely employed mathematical and logical methods, and made situation semantics become a highly formalized semantic theory. In addition, Barwise's study was eventually applied to the field of natural language.In the second part, by making comparison, we obtain that situation semantics solves the problem of paradox from pragmatic perspective, and it gives full consideration to the situation in the role of natural language, recognizing that in different contexts, the proposition is not necessarily truth value. So we must regard their relationship in a relative way, and know that the proposition of truth value changes with the situation. Therefore, it should study the changeable characterization of lying semantics from the perspective of pragmatics in order to get the new resolution that finally solves the liar paradox. And this is an important difference of the program of paradox-solving between situation semantics and traditional semantics.In the third part, by comparing with Montague Grammar, we-find that in situation semantics, the extension of sentence means the situation described in it rather than its truth value. What is more, a sentence has different meanings because the context it describes is greatly different. Meanwhile, situation semantics advocates regarding sentence connotation (meaning) as some kind of relation between the stated context and the external context. It also introduces the concept of the psychological context to portray the semantic characteristics of prepositional attitude sentences.In addition, based on the theory of previous meaning study, situation semantics made a further study and proposed a new meaning theory: "relation theory of meaning ". The relation theory of meaning holds that meaning is a kind of relation existed in different situations (or situational types).In the fourth part, situation semantics takes logic as foundation, integrates mathematical methods, and ultimately develops a unique theory. It is not only closely linked to linguistics and logic, but also closely linked to philosophical problems. Therefore, situation semantics has a broad prospect for development.