Frege’s Begriffsschrift and logicism

Abstract

I put forward a new interpretation of Frege’s use of the formal system developed in Begriffsschrift, the concept-script. In contrast with the commonly-held view, I argue that this use suggests that he did not articulate a logicist programme in 1879. Two lines of argument support this claim. First, I show that between 1879 and 1882 Frege presented the concept-script of Begriffsschrift as a tool for arithmetic, and not as a logical theory from which to deduce arithmetical theorems. Second, I consider Frege’s results in Begriffsschrift and conclude that they do not imply an endorsement of his later logicist programme.