A REGRA DA NOMINAÇÃO E A REGRA DA COMUNICAÇÃO: OS LIMITES DA LINGUAGEM SEGUNDO O DE MAGISTRO DE SANTO AGOSTINHO

Abstract

he central theme of our monographic investigation revolves around Augustinian notions of language and their conditions of application expressed in the book De Magistro's. In this field, some questions seem to arise, such as: In De Magistro, does language, compared to its communication function, have a limited role? If so, what is the function of the language presented in this booklet? If the answer to the limit of language is metaphysical, then does this imply a neglect by Saint Augustine of the discussion on sign and language dealt with in De Magistro? We understand that, by establishing the relationships between the rules of naming and communication, in De Magistro, Augustine’s manages to establish the limits of natural language, which is focused on the field of pragmatics, not semantics. The objective of this monograph is to analyze the institution of relations between the rule of naming and communication in the work of Saint Augustine’s, De Magistro, where he establishes the limits of natural language, emphasizing the field of pragmatics, not semantics. Our specific objectives are: a) to examine the metaphysical and epistemological structure developed by Augustine and its influence on language based on De Magistro's pamphlet; b) analyze the structure of language and the theory of sign developed by Augustine in the aforementioned work; c) identify and demonstrate, in De Magistro's Augustinian system, the function of language through the rules of naming and communication. In order to better understand Augustinian thinking about the limits of language, our investigation guide was divided into three stages. In the first, we analyze the Augustinian doctrine of the interior Master, Christ, and its relationship with access to knowledge; the Neoplatonic innateism Christianized by Saint Augustine’s, according to a Plotinian vision; and the metaphor of enlightenment from a metaphysical and epistemological perspective. In the second moment, we focus on the tripartite division, including the syntactic relationship of signs with signs, the semantic relationship of signs with objects and the pragmatic relationship of signs with speakers from a perspective of language and mind. In the third moment, we dedicate ourselves to the analysis of the understanding of the naming rule from a natural perspective, and of the communication rule in a conventional way; the ambiguity generated by language, and the role of the word in search or recall; the limit of language in communication.