1001Philosophers

A. J. Ayer Quotes on Truth

Alfred Jules Ayer was a British philosopher and the most prominent representative of logical positivism in the English-speaking world. This page collects quotes attributed to A. J. Ayer on the topic of truth, drawn from across the philosopher's works.

Quotes

  • Attributed to A. J. Ayer:

    “No statement which refers to a reality transcending the limits of all possible sense-experience can have any literal significance.”

  • Attributed to A. J. Ayer:

    “The presence of an ethical symbol in a proposition adds nothing to its factual content.”

  • Attributed to A. J. Ayer:

    “There are no moral truths, but only moral attitudes.”

  • Attributed to A. J. Ayer:

    “I tend to think that art expresses what cannot be put into theoretical form.”

  • Attributed to A. J. Ayer:

    “It is silly, as well as presumptuous, for any one philosopher to claim that he is bringing the pursuit of truth to its conclusion.”