Immanence and empiricism. An epistemological examination of Louis Hjelmslev’s theory of language

Abstract

Given that Hjelmslev views theory as a pure deductive system,
we must understand how such a theory can harmonize with an empirical science. The means for such understanding can be
explained via two principles: 1) the link between theory and
empirical knowledge is based on a principle of accommodation;
2) the theory of a certain empirical knowledge must follow the
rules of good governance according to a principle of empiricism.
We shall present the role of each of these two principles in turn,
to ultimately arrive at a third, the principle of immanence, which
supports the purely deductive nature of theory. Our hypothesis is
that these three principles are actually one and the same, viewed
from different perspectives. Lastly, we provide a brief comparison
between the principle of immanence and the fundamentals
of Popper’s epistemology.