The Atlas of Reality: A Comprehensive Guide to Metaphysics

699 Pages·2017·6.74 MB·english

by  Robert C. Koons

The Atlas of Reality
The Atlas of Reality
A Comprehensive Guide to Metaphysics
Robert C. Koons and Timothy H. Pickavance
Thiseditionfirstpublished2017
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1 2017
Toourchildren,Emily,Betsy,andBenKoons,andLyle
andGretchenPickavance.
Contents
Acknowledgements xvii
PartI Foundations
1 Introduction 3
1.1 ABriefHistoryofMetaphysics 3
1.2 WhyDoMetaphysics? 5
1.2.1 Fatalismandalternativepossibilities 6
1.2.2 Causation:rights,responsibilities,andknowledge 6
1.2.3 Thefoundationsofscience:laws,space,andtime 7
1.2.4 Mindandbody 7
1.2.5 Personalidentityandpersistence 8
1.3 HowtoUsetheBook 9
2 Truthmakers 13
2.1 Introduction 13
2.1.1 Propositions 14
2.1.2 Truthmakers 17
2.2 FiveArgumentsforClassicalTruthmakerTheory 19
2.3 TheChallengeofDeflationism 25
2.4 TruthmakerMaximalism 30
2.4.1 Fundamentalityandlogicallycomplexpropositions 30
2.4.2 Theproblemofnegativeexistentials 31
2.5 AlternativestoTruthmakerMaximalism 36
2.5.1 AtomicTruthmakerTheory 37
2.5.2 SpectralTruthmakerTheory 40
2.5.3 TruthSupervenesonBeing 42
2.6 ConclusionandPreview 44
Notes 45
3 Grounding,OntologicalDependence,andFundamentality 47
3.1 IsGroundingReal? 49
viii Contents
3.1.1 Connectionswithnaturallanguage 49
3.1.2 Plausibleexamplesofgrounding 49
3.1.3 Philosophicaldebatesthatturnongroundingclaims 50
3.1.4 Fruitfulnessofgrounding 51
3.1.5 Groundingisdifferentfromconceptualpriority,reduction,and
supervenience 52
3.2 RelationbetweenGroundingandTruthmaking 55
3.2.1 Interdefinability? 55
3.2.2 Cangroundingtheoryreplacetruthmakertheory? 56
3.3 RelationbetweenGroundingandOntologicalDependence 58
3.3.1 Twokindsofessence 58
3.3.2 Circulardependency? 58
3.3.3 Twokindsoffundamentalentity 59
3.3.4 Groundingandessence 61
3.4 Conceptualvs.Extra-ConceptualGrounding 62
3.4.1 Theontologicalimportofgrounding 64
3.4.2 SupportfortheOneTruthmakerperFundamentalPropertyPrinciple 65
3.5 AlternativestoGrounding? 65
3.5.1 Quine’smethodofparaphrase 66
3.5.2 Fine’sreallyoperator 67
3.5.3 Primitivefundamentality,naturalness,andprimitivestructure 68
3.6 CanGroundingRelationsbeGrounded? 69
3.7 ConnectionsbetweenGroundingandEntailment 71
3.8 HowisGroundingDifferentfromCausalExplanation? 72
3.9 Conclusion:GroundingandOntologicalEconomy 72
Notes 73
PartII Dispositions
4 Conditionals 77
4.1 CounterfactualConditionals:Semantics,Logic,andMetaphysics 78
4.2 Hypotheticalism 84
4.3 Anti-HypotheticalismandLawsofNature 86
4.4 StrongHypotheticalism:CounterfactualAccountsofPowersandDispositions 90
Notes 92
5 LawsofNature 94
5.1 StrongNomism:TheDretske-Armstrong-Tooley(DAT)TheoryofLaws 94
5.2 Neo-Humeism:ReductionofConditionals,Laws,andPowers 99
5.2.1 Argumentfromscientificrealism 100
5.2.2 Theextrinsicalityobjectionandsmallworlds 102
5.2.3 Objectionbasedoninduction 103
Notes 105
6 PowersandProperties 106
6.1 AdvantagesofStrongPowerism 106
6.1.1 Causalconnectionsandcausaldirection 106
6.1.2 Strongpowerismandscientificknowledge 107
6.2 TheIndividuationofProperties 108
Contents ix
6.2.1 Thecausaltheoryofproperties:causalstructuralism 111
6.2.2 Dual-aspectvs.mixedtwo-categorytheories 117
6.3 ObjectionstoStrongPowerism 118
6.4 Conclusion 121
Notes 121
PartIII UniversalsandParticulars
7 Universals 125
7.1 Introduction 125
7.1.1 Whatpropertiesmustexplain 126
7.2 Realism 128
7.2.1 TroublesforRealism 129
7.3 UniversalsandtheProblemofIntentionality 142
7.4 PropertiesastheGroundofCausalPowers 145
Notes 145
8 ReductiveNominalismandTropeTheory 147
8.1 ReductiveNominalism 147
8.1.1 PredicateNominalism 148
8.1.2 ClassNominalism 149
8.1.3 ResemblanceNominalism 152
8.2 TropeTheory 165
8.2.1 TwovarietiesofTropeTheory 167
8.2.2 SometroublesforTropeTheory 167
8.3 Conclusion 169
Notes 169
9 ParticularsandtheProblemofIndividuation 171
9.1 Introduction 171
9.2 Facts 172
9.3 Substances 175
9.3.1 RelationalOntology 176
9.3.2 ConstituentOntology 179
Notes 200
10 Relations,Structures,andQuantities 201
10.1 AccountsofRelationalFacts 201
10.2 Non-SymmetricalRelationsandtheProblemofOrder 206
10.2.1 Thetwinproblemsofconverserelations 207
10.2.2 Takingthingsinorder 210
10.2.3 Afamilyofdistinct,complexinstantiationrelations 210
10.2.4 ConstituentOntologiesandnon-symmetricrelations 211
10.3 StructuralUniversalsandConstituentOntology 215
10.4 Determinables,Quantities,andRealNumbers 219
10.4.1 DeterminateUniversalTheory 220
10.4.2 SimpleIntensityTheory 221
10.4.3 CompositeIntensityTheory 224
x Contents
10.5 ConclusionandPreview 225
Notes 225
PartIV TheNatureofReality
11 NihilismandMonism 229
11.1 NihilismandAliquidism 229
11.2 Monism 237
11.2.1 ParmenideanMonism 238
11.2.2 Spinoza’sMonism 240
11.2.3 Bradley’sMonism 243
11.2.4 JonathanSchaffer’sCosmicMonism 249
Note 252
12 TheNon-ExistentandtheVaguelyExisting 253
12.1 DoesEverythingExist? 253
12.1.1 Meinong’sCharacterizationPrincipleandRussell’stheoryof
descriptions 254
12.1.2 Quantifiersandpluralexpressions 258
12.1.3 ExportationandtheBarcanFormula 260
12.1.4 ArgumentsforActualism 262
12.1.5 ArgumentsagainstActualism 266
12.1.6 Definingexistence 270
12.2 OnticVagueness 271
12.2.1 Themultiplemeaningtheoryofvagueness. 274
12.2.2 Realontologicalvagueness 275
12.2.3 Canidentityorexistencebevague? 279
12.3 Conclusion 280
13 Solipsism,Idealism,andtheProblemofPerception 281
13.1 DefiningtheMentalandtheExternal 282
13.2 SolipsismandPhenomenalism 284
13.3 TheoriesofPerception 286
13.3.1 Theargumentfromhallucinationandillusion 288
13.3.2 Theargumentfromcolors 297
13.4 ArgumentsagainstPhenomenalism 306
13.4.1 WhatfollowsfromtheVeilofPerception? 306
13.4.2 Common-senseandScientificRealism 307
13.4.3 Theapparentimpossibilityofphenomenalreduction 308
13.5 ArgumentsagainstSolipsism 309
13.5.1 Appealstocommonsenseandtoperception 309
13.5.2 TheParadigmCaseArgumentagainstubiquitousillusion 310
13.6 ConclusionandPreview 312
Notes 313
PartV Modality
14 Possibility,Necessity,andActuality:Concretism 317
14.1 Introduction 317
14.2 Concretism:WorldsasUniverses 321
Contents xi
14.3 ProblemsforConcretism 327
14.4 Conclusion 331
Note 331
15 Abstractionism:WorldsasRepresentations 332
15.1 MagicalAbstractionism 333
15.1.1 ModalAnti-Indexicalism 334
15.1.2 Non-indexicalreductionsofactuality 336
15.1.3 AdilemmaforMagicalAbstractionism 339
15.2 StructuralAbstractionism 341
15.2.1 LinguisticAbstractionism 342
15.2.2 PictorialAbstractionism 347
15.3 AristotelianTheoriesofPossibility 348
15.4 Conclusion 350
Note 351
16 DeReModalityandModalKnowledge 352
16.1 ModalityDeRe:TransworldIdentityandCounterpartTheory 352
16.1.1 FromAbstractionismtoTransworldIdentity 354
16.1.2 FromConcretismtoCounterpartTheory 355
16.1.3 StrongTransworldIdentityandmerehaecceitisticdifferences 360
16.1.4 Summary 362
16.2 ModalityandEpistemology:PossibilityandConceivability 363
16.2.1 Variousnotionsofconceivability 363
16.2.2 Objectionstoidentifyingthenecessaryandtheapriori 364
16.2.3 Knowledgeofpossibility:patchworkprinciples 367
16.2.4 Aristotelian/Poweristconceptionsofmodalknowledge 368
16.3 Conclusion 369
Notes 369
PartVI SpaceandTime
17 IsSpaceMerelyRelational? 373
17.1 TheNatureofLocation 373
17.2 SpatialSubstantivalism 375
17.2.1 TheoryofSpatialQualities:Advantagesanddisadvantages 378
17.2.2 SpatialParticularism:Distanceasanessentialbutexternalrelation 378
17.3 SpatialRelationism 381
17.4 AbsencesandVacuums 386
17.5 Conclusion 388
Notes 389
18 StructureofSpace:Pointsvs.Regions 390
18.1 ConstructingPointsfromRegions 391
18.1.1 Digressiononlogicalconstructions 391
18.2 Pointsvs.Regions 394
18.3 ArgumentsagainstPointsasFundamental 397
18.3.1 Finitism 398
xii Contents
18.3.2 Mathematicalparadoxes,fromZenotoTarski 402
18.3.3 Spatialboundariesandphysicalcontact 405
18.4 Voluminismvs.Volume-BoundaryDualism 408
18.4.1 Continuousvariationinquantityandquality 410
18.4.2 Coincidentboundaries:Actualvs.potentialboundaries 413
18.5 Conclusion 414
Note 414
19 TheStructureofTime 415
19.1 IsTimeComposedofInstantsorIntervals? 415
19.1.1 ArgumentforInstantism:Possiblesuper-tasks 417
19.1.2 ArgumentsforIntervalism:Impossiblesuper-tasks 419
19.2 InstantsasDependentEntities 425
19.3 DoesTimehaveaBeginning? 427
19.4 Conclusion 429
20 Time’sPassage 430
20.1 TensersandAnti-Tensers 432
20.2 VarietiesofAnti-Tensism 435
20.2.1 ReflexivethoughtsandOldAnti-Tensism 435
20.2.2 IndexicalpropositionsandNewAnti-Tensism 436
20.3 VarietiesofTensism 437
20.4 Presentism 439
20.5 ArgumentsforTensism 442
20.5.1 The“ThankGoodness”Problem 442
20.5.2 Evidenceagainstindexicality:Parallelsbetween‘now’and‘actually’ 447
20.5.3 Theexperienceoftheflowoftime 448
20.5.4 Thepresentasauniquelyactualboundarybetweenpastandfuture 451
20.5.5 Thethreatoffatalism 453
20.5.6 Circulartimeandtimetravel 454
20.6 Conclusion 456
Note 457
21 ArgumentsforAnti-Tensism 458
21.1 HowFastDoesTimeFlow? 458
21.2 TruthmakersforTruthsaboutthePast 461
21.2.1 ReductionisticPresentismorOccurentism 461
21.2.2 Suigenerispropertiesofpresent-dayobjects 461
21.2.3 Primitivepast-tensedfactsorstatesofaffairs. 462
21.2.4 RejectionofTruthmakerTheory 463
21.2.5 TruthmakerproblemsforGrowingBlockTensism 463
21.2.6 Furthertruthmakerproblems:Cross-temporalspatialrelations
(Motion) 464
21.2.7 Truthmakerproblems:Othercross-temporalrelationsbetweenpast
entities 466
21.2.8 AfinaltruthmakerproblemforPresentism:Open-ended
generalizations 469
21.3 TheTheoryofRelativity 469