Grice said he had two mentors: Quine and Chomsky. Chomsky was particularly important. Before him, as Grice notes, it was just Otto Jesperson (The man was a Dane and born "Jespersen" but Grice cites him as "Jesperson", and I prefer Grice's spelling).
Of Quine, Grice writes, rather:
(in "Reply to Richards", p. 59:
"My own efforts to arrive at a more
theoretical treatment of linguistic
phenomena of the kind with which
in Oxford we had LONG been
concerned derived much guidance
from the work of Quine and of
Chomsky on syntax."
------
It is not clear if he means, "Quine on syntax". I don't think so. I should NOT think so.
---- But I LIKE to think someone may think so!
Grice goes on:
"Quine helped me to throw light"
and a few pales of water
----
"on the problem of deciding
what kind of thing
a SUITABLE theory would be"
---- Quine has a rather boring book with the name 'Theories' in the title of it.
Grice goes on:
"and also by his example exhibited
the virtues of a strong
methodology."
---- Too strong to be true!
---
Grice goes on:
"I should add that Quine's
influence on me was that
of a model."
---- as when we say Schiffer (Susan) is a model -- or was.
---
Grice goes on:
"I was NEVER drawn towards
the acceptance either of
his actual [supposedly good strong]
methodology OR of his
[usually very wicked] specific
philosophical positions."
Some model!
Imagine if I were to say: "Jesus Christ has always been my model. Not that I was every attracted to the adoption of either his method of preaching OR his teachings. He was just a model".
---
Grice goes on:
"I have to confess that I find it a little
sad"
--- but there are sadder things -- e.g. Hiroshima.
"that my two mentors would
never agree on one thing."
---
---
"It seems indeed a pity that two
people who are as far removed
from dumbness as any (at least
among those I have been lucky to
encounter) should NOT be equally
be removed from deafness."
----
----
The point is particularly poignant if you are familiar with the geography of Cambridge, Mass. --. The distance between Quine and Chomsky was at a time a few blocks (walking distance indeed -- running distance actually, along the charming banks of the Charles).
----
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