Question

Gottlob Frege, in his Sense and Reference, discusses the identity relation between the statements “a=a” and “a=b”. Which of the following are his conclusions?

• A. Identity relation is between names or signs of objects.
• B. They are statements of differing cognitive value.
• C. The two ensuing judgments of the statements are different.
• D. Sense expressed in the two statements are the same.

Hint:

In Frege: same {reference} can come with different {sense}, which explains why “a=b” can be informative while “a=a” is trivial.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A, B, C

Step 1: Understanding Frege’s problem.
Frege asks why “a=a” and “a=b” can both be true identity statements, yet “a=b” can be informative while “a=a” is trivial. This leads him to distinguish sense (mode of presentation) and reference (the object).
Step 2: Evaluating option (A).
(A) Correct: Frege argues that identity cannot be a relation between objects themselves (since an object is identical with itself trivially). Instead, identity statements concern the names/signs that refer to the same object.
Step 3: Evaluating option (B).
(B) Correct: “a=a” and “a=b” differ in cognitive value. “a=b” may extend knowledge by linking two different senses to the same reference.
Step 4: Evaluating option (C).
(C) Correct: Since their cognitive values differ, the judgments formed by understanding them differ: “a=b” can be a genuine discovery, while “a=a” is merely a tautology-like recognition.
Step 5: Rejecting option (D).
(D) Incorrect: Frege’s key point is that the sense of “a” and “b” can be different even when the reference is the same. Therefore, the sense expressed in “a=a” and “a=b” is not the same.
Step 6: Conclusion.
Frege’s conclusions align with (A), (B), and (C).
Final Answer: (A), (B), (C)