Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 September 2025
Ockham’s Summa Logicae treats what modern philosophers would consider philosophy of language and metaphysics, including semantics, Aristotle’s ten categories, and mental language. It is also deeply polemical, especially in Part I (the section covering the notion of a term); hence it is no surprise that his theory of terms supports and defends his parsimonious metaphysics against opponents. Ockham’s view of relational terms in SL is a great example of such a logical theory arising at the crossroads of such issues. Central for Ockham were (1) the ontological implications of relational terms, (2) the question of how they refer, (3) the proper interpretation of Aristotle on relations, and (4) the question of how propositions carrying relational terms should be evaluated by logicians and theologians. After explaining the background ontological controversies mentioned earlier, this chapter exposits Ockham’s main conclusions and most important arguments supporting his favored view of relations.
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