Statement (logic)

<h2 id="overview">Overview</h2>
<p><a href="/facts/Philosophy_of_language/qwNCwF4W">Philosopher of language</a> <a href="/facts/Peter_Strawson/GWQfjcys">Peter Strawson</a> (1919–2006) advocated the use of the term "statement" in sense (2) in preference to <a href="/facts/Proposition/0877MFMD">proposition</a>.  Strawson used the term "statement" to make the point that two declarative sentences can make the same statement if they say the same thing in different ways.  Thus, in the usage advocated by Strawson, "All men are mortal." and "Every man is mortal." are two different sentences that make the same statement.
</p><p>In either case, a statement is viewed as a <a href="/facts/Truthbearer/DN4IcCGv">truth bearer</a>.
</p><p>Examples of sentences that are (or make) true statements:
</p>
<ul><li>"Socrates is a man."</li>
<li>"A triangle has three sides."</li>
<li>"Madrid is the capital of Spain."</li></ul>
<p>Examples of sentences that are also statements, even though they aren't true:
</p>
<ul><li>"All toasters are made of solid gold."</li>
<li>"Two plus two equals five."</li></ul>
<p>Examples of sentences that are not (or do not make) statements:
</p>
<ol><li>"Who are you?"</li>
<li>"Run!"</li>
<li>"Greenness perambulates."</li>
<li>"I had one grunch but the eggplant over there."</li>
<li>"<a href="/facts/Charles_III/w4hCfC9k">King Charles III</a> is wise."</li>
<li>"Broccoli tastes good."</li>
<li>"Pegasus exists."</li></ol>
<p>The first two examples are not declarative sentences and therefore are not (or do not make) statements.
The third and fourth are declarative sentences but, lacking meaning, are neither true nor false and therefore are not (or do not make) statements.  The fifth and sixth examples are meaningful declarative sentences, but are not statements but rather matters of opinion or taste.  Whether or not the sentence "Pegasus exists." is a statement is a subject of debate among philosophers.  <a href="/facts/Bertrand_Russell/SRpwNX2U">Bertrand Russell</a> held that it is a (false) statement.  Strawson held it is not a statement at all.
</p>
<h2 id="as-an-abstract-entity">As an abstract entity</h2>
<p>In some treatments, "statement" is introduced in order to distinguish a sentence from its informational content. A statement is regarded as the information content of an information-bearing sentence. Thus, a sentence is related to the statement it bears like a numeral to the number it refers to. Statements are abstract <a href="/facts/Logic/8JnpJLtt">logical entities</a>, while sentences are <a href="/facts/Grammar/vprQsHIR">grammatical entities</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a>
</p>
<h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/facts/Belief/HbPvkGT6">Belief</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Claim_(logic)/0877MFMD">Claim (logic)</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Concept/VWB6yhQp">Concept</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Sentence_(mathematical_logic)/lnsLzvTx">Sentence (mathematical logic)</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Truthbearer/DN4IcCGv">Truthbearer - statements</a></li></ul>

<h3>Works cited</h3>
<ul><li>Rouse, David L. (2005). <a href="http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Chapter%202%20Sentences,%20Statements%20and%20Arguments.pdf">"Sentences, Statements and Arguments"</a> (PDF). <a href="http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Contents.htm"><i>A Practical Introduction to Formal Logic</i></a>.</li>
<li>Ruzsa, Imre (2000), <i>Bevezetés a modern logikába</i>, Osiris tankönyvek, Budapest: Osiris, <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 963-379-978-3</li>
<li><a href="/facts/Peter_Millican/7x9J3rna">Millican, Peter</a> (1994). <a href="https://www.millican.org/papers/1994Wolfram.pdf">"Statements and Modality: Strawson, Quine and Wolfram"</a> (PDF).</li></ul>
<h2 id="further-reading">Further reading</h2>
<ul><li>A. G. Hamilton, <i>Logic for Mathematicians</i>, Cambridge University Press, 1980, <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 0-521-29291-3.</li>
<li>Xenakis, Jason (1956). "Sentence and Statement: Prof. Quine on Mr. Strawson". <i><a href="/facts/Analysis_(journal)/7gKQabFP">Analysis</a></i>. 16 (4): 91–4. <a href="/facts/Doi_(identifier)/muM9Etpq">doi</a>:<a href="https://doi.org/10.2307%2F3326478">10.2307/3326478</a>. <a href="/facts/ISSN_(identifier)/DPAflDvU">ISSN</a> <a href="https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1467-8284">1467-8284</a>. <a href="/facts/JSTOR_(identifier)/YTeVmaJ7">JSTOR</a> <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3326478">3326478</a>.</li>
<li><a href="/facts/Peter_Strawson/GWQfjcys">P. F. Strawson</a>, "<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110723034837/http://www.sol.lu.se/common/courses/LINC04/VT2010/Strawson1950.pdf/">On Referring</a>" in <i><a href="/facts/Mind_(journal)/GAjKJqwo">Mind</a></i>, Vol 59 No 235 (Jul 1950)</li></ul>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1"><p>Millican (1994) "Central to the [Strawsonian tradition] is the distinction between a sentence and what is said by a sentence - Strawson initially called the latter a use of a sentence, and sometimes a proposition, but his most frequent term for what is said, which Wolfram consistently adopts, is the statement expressed." - Millican, Peter (1994). "Statements and Modality: Strawson, Quine and Wolfram" (PDF). <a href="https://www.millican.org/papers/1994Wolfram.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.millican.org/papers/1994Wolfram.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:2"><p>Rouse (2005) "A statement is defined as that which is expressible by a sentence, and is either true or false... A statement is a more abstract entity than even a sentence type. It is not identical
with the sentence used to express it... [That is,] different sentences can be used to express the same statement." - Rouse, David L. (2005). "Sentences, Statements and Arguments" (PDF). A Practical Introduction to Formal Logic. <a href="http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Chapter%202%20Sentences,%20Statements%20and%20Arguments.pdf" target="_blank">http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Chapter%202%20Sentences,%20Statements%20and%20Arguments.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:3"><p>Rouse 2005. - Rouse, David L. (2005). "Sentences, Statements and Arguments" (PDF). A Practical Introduction to Formal Logic. <a href="http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Chapter%202%20Sentences,%20Statements%20and%20Arguments.pdf" target="_blank">http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Chapter%202%20Sentences,%20Statements%20and%20Arguments.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:4"><p>Rouse 2005. - Rouse, David L. (2005). "Sentences, Statements and Arguments" (PDF). A Practical Introduction to Formal Logic. <a href="http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Chapter%202%20Sentences,%20Statements%20and%20Arguments.pdf" target="_blank">http://people.uvawise.edu/philosophy/Logic%20Text/Chapter%202%20Sentences,%20Statements%20and%20Arguments.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:5"><p>Ruzsa 2000, p. 16. - Ruzsa, Imre (2000), Bevezetés a modern logikába, Osiris tankönyvek, Budapest: Osiris, ISBN 963-379-978-3 <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
</ol>

Statement (logic) open-in-new

Statement (logic)