Certainly ordinary language has no claim to be the last word, if there is such a thing.
About J. L. Austin
John Langshaw Austin, OBE, FBAwas a British philosopher of language and leading proponent of ordinary language philosophy, best known for developing the theory of speech acts.
Austin pointed out that we use language to do things as well as to assert things, and that the utterance of a statement like “I promise to do so-and-so” is best understood as doing something–making a promise–rather than making an assertion about anything.
More quotes from J. L. Austin
There are more ways of outraging speech than contradiction merely.
English philosopher
Usually it is uses of words, not words in themselves, that are properly called vague.
English philosopher
But I owe it to the subject to say, that it has long afforded me what philosophy is so often thought, and made, barren of – the fun of discovery, the pleasures of co-operation, and the satisfaction of reaching agreement.
English philosopher
Going back into the history of a word, very often into Latin, we come back pretty commonly to pictures or models of how things happen or are done.
English philosopher
Sentences are not as such either true or false.
English philosopher
Certainly ordinary language has no claim to be the last word, if there is such a thing.
English philosopher
Infelicity is an ill to which all acts are heir which have the general character of ritual or ceremonial, all conventional acts.
English philosopher
In the one defence, briefly, we accept responsibility but deny that it was bad: in the other, we admit that it was bad but don’t accept full, or even any, responsibility.
English philosopher