Assertion and its social significance

This special issue of RIFL investigates the topic of assertion with a special focus on its role(s) and effects in our discursive practices and communication. Assertion is probably the most studied speech act in the philosophy of language. As a matter of fact, assertion is the speech act anyone of us uses to make claims about how things are and is assumed to be the most effective way to transmit knowledge in human communication. That is why so much emphasis is being placed on it not only by philosophers of language, but also by epistemologists and scholars from other fields of research. There is, however, still much controversy about its nature, as well as its effects. In fact, the effects and power of assertions crucially involve and affects several aspects of our social reality. Furthermore, the question of how assertion relates to other types of speech acts, such as dangerous speech acts (e.g., the act of silencing), and, more generally, to other phenomena related to language use, such as implicatures and presuppositions, has not been deeply investigated yet. Finally, the empirical results coming from studies carried out in experimental philosophy and linguistics have greatly enriched and challenged the theoretical debate. This special issue aims to bring together these many perspectives in order to promote a fruitful dialogue.