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Practical Moore sentences

Abstract:
I discuss what I call practical Moore sentences: sentences like ‘You must close your door, but I don't know whether you will’, which combine an order together with an avowal of agnosticism about whether the order will be obeyed. I show that practical Moore sentences are generally infelicitous. But this infelicity is surprising: it seems like there should be nothing wrong with giving someone an order while acknowledging that you do not know whether it will obeyed. I suggest that this infelicity points to a striking psychological fact, with potentially broad ramifications concerning the structure of norms of speech acts: namely, when giving an order, we must act as if we believe we will be obeyed.
Publication status:
Published
Peer review status:
Peer reviewed

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Publisher copy:
10.1111/nous.12287

Authors

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Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
HUMS
Department:
Philosophy Faculty
Oxford college:
All Souls College
Role:
Author


Publisher:
Wiley
Journal:
Noûs More from this journal
Volume:
55
Issue:
1
Pages:
39-61
Publication date:
2019-05-03
Acceptance date:
2019-02-27
DOI:
EISSN:
1468-0068
ISSN:
0029-4624


Language:
English
Pubs id:
pubs:1043494
UUID:
uuid:4edac87a-2b2a-45ad-b2ba-77dffd1dcd8c
Local pid:
pubs:1043494
Source identifiers:
1043494
Deposit date:
2019-08-14
ARK identifier:

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