Sens, référence et existence : que faire de l'extra-linguistique ?

Should linguistics encompass the real ? Some think it shouldn't, but can we conceive of a meaning disconnected from its reference ? We only have access to the world such as we perceive it, not to the objective world, and what matters is that a stable intersubjective community can agree on its representation. Referential semantics presupposes a language which is oriented towards « the outside » . The fact that this exstant outside is firmly structured by language does not mean one should consider it as a mere discursive object. Referential conceptions postulate a homogeneous meaning. Our contention, however, is that meaning is heterogeneous and that according to the type of expression used it pertains either to a descriptive model, or to an instructional model, or on occasion to both.Kleiber Georges. Sens, référence et existence : que faire de l'extra-linguistique ?. In: Langages, 31ᵉ année, n°127, 1997. Langue, praxis et production de sens, sous la direction de Paul Siblot. pp. 9-37