Putnam on the Magical Theory of Reference

Abstract

The concept of reference is the main contention of epistemology and metaphysics in general and semantics in particular. It is through the reference of the linguistic expressions that one may come to know about the world or reality or ontology. It has been acknowledged that language does refer and the referential function of language is helpful to know about reality. However, the paradigm of reference remains a bone of contention to the philosophers. Putnam uses the metaphor ‘brains in a vat’ to expose the magical theory of reference. According to Putnam, the magical theory of reference is a big default of reference. He, therefore, attempts to overcome the default of reference through the analysis of the metaphor ‘brains in a vat’. The main strategy of this paper is to exemplify the philosophical insight and significance of the metaphor ‘brains in a vat’ while solving the problem of reference.