Deflationism and semantic ascent: defining a problem in the analysis of truth

Abstract

One of the leading instances of the deflationary theories of truth in the 20th century is Quine’s disquotational account. This paper argues that there is a considerable tension between the notion of semantic ascent – a notion central to the disquotational account – and the general deflationary attitude towards truth. In light of this tension, also witnessed in some deflationary accounts other than Quine’s, it is shown that a seperation is available between two kinds of deflationism, one that takes the truth-predicative form to be a reliable tool for logical analysis and one which does not.