Editing Sense and reference (section)

==Translation of ''Bedeutung''==
As noted above, translators of Frege have rendered the German ''Bedeutung'' in various ways. The term 'reference' has been the most widely adopted, but this fails to capture the meaning of the original German ('meaning' or 'significance'), and does not reflect the decision to standardise key terms across different editions of Frege's works published by [[Wiley-Blackwell#Blackwell Publishing history|Blackwell]].<ref>According to M. Beaney (ed., ''The Frege Reader'', Oxford: Blackwell 1997, p. 36) 'the decision was taken at a meeting in the early 1970s attended by Michael Dummett, [[Peter Geach]], [[William Kneale]], Roger White and a representative from Blackwell. The translation of ''Bedeutung'' by 'meaning' was unanimously agreed after lengthy discussion'.</ref> The decision was based on the principle of [[exegetical neutrality]]:  that "if at any point in a text there is a passage that raises for the native speaker legitimate questions of [[exegesis]], then, if at all possible, a translator should strive to confront the reader of his version with the same questions of exegesis and not produce a version which in his mind resolves those questions".<ref>Long, P. and White, A., 'On the Translation of Frege's ''Bedeutung'': A Reply to Dr. Bell', ''Analysis'' 40 pp. 196-202, 1980, p. 196. See also Bell, D., "On the Translation of Frege's ''Bedeutung''", ''Analysis'' Vol. 40, No. 4 (Oct., 1980), pp. 191-195.</ref> The term 'meaning' best captures the standard German meaning of ''Bedeutung''. However, while Frege's own use of the term can sound as odd in German for modern readers as when translated into English, the related term ''deuten'' does mean 'to point towards'. Though ''Bedeutung'' is not usually used with this etymological proximity in mind in German, German speakers can well make sense of ''Bedeutung'' as signifying 'reference', in the sense of it being what ''Bedeutung'' points, i.e. refers to. Moreover, 'meaning' captures Frege's early use of ''Bedeutung'' well,<ref>Beaney, p. 37</ref> and it would be problematic to translate Frege's early use as 'meaning' and his later use as 'reference', suggesting a change in terminology not evident in the original German.