Presupposition

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Presupposition is not directly related to Presuppositionalism, which is a religious belief, although presuppositionalist beliefs are certainly full of presupposition.

A presupposition is a linguistic term for an implicit assumption in a phrase, usually a claim or a question.

Presuppositions can be used in a fallacious manner by playing on these assumptions, e.g., by asking a loaded yes-or-no question that will implicate the speaker in something disagreeable no matter which way he answers.

The appropriate answer to a question based upon a false presupposition is "mu".[1]

Examples

  • Phrase: "Have you stopped beating your wife?"
  • Presupposition: 1) You, at some point, have at least one wife. 2) At some point you have beaten your wife (regardless whether that is the same wife as the first presupposition).
  • Phrase: "I have quit smoking."
  • Presupposition: I used to smoke.

And from Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll:

"How am I to get in?" asked Alice again, in a louder tone.

"Are you to get in at all?" said the Footman. "That's the first question, you know."

No direct relation to

See also

References

  1. See the Wikipedia article on Mu (negative).