Subject: new books : semantics

semantics * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * de swart , henriette ( university of utrecht ) ; introduction to natural language semantics ; isbn : 1-57586 - 138 - 0 ( paper ) , 1-57586 - 139 - 9 ( cloth ) ; 258 pp . csli publications 1998 : http : / / csli-www . stanford . edu / publications / email : pubs @ roslin . stanford . edu . distributed by cambridge university press . semantics is defined as the study of meaning expressed by elements of a language or combinations thereof . utterances are not just noices or scribbles , they are used to convey information , they are linked with kinds of events , with states of mind , etc . speaker and hearer use language to communicate . this introduction is concerned with the semantics of natural languages . the text examines what issues semantics , as a theory of meaning , should address ; determining what the meanings of words of the language are and how to semantically combine elements of a language to build up complex meanings . logical langauges are then developed as formal metalanguages to natural language . subsequent chapters address propositional logic , the syntax and semantics of ( first-order ) predicate logic as an extension of propositional logic , and generalized quantifier theory . going beyond extenstional theory , de swart relativizes the interpretation of expressions to times to account for verbal tense , time adverbials and temporal connectives and introduces possible worlds to model intensions , modal adverbs and modal auxiliaries . this broad overview of natural language semantics should cover most of the points addressed in an introductory course . numerous exercises punctuate each chapter and an example exam based on the materials presented is included , making this volume a perfect textbook and resource for any undergraduate or graduate-level introductory course in semantics . * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * csli publications ventura hall stanford university stanford , ca 94305-4115 telephone ( 650 ) 723-1839 fax ( 650 ) 725-2166 http : / / csli-www . stanford . edu / publications
