Promiscuous Endurantism and Diachronic Vagueness (original) (raw)
Related papers
Three-dimensionalist's semantic solution to diachronic vagueness
A standard response to the problem of diachronic vagueness is 'the semantic solution', which demands an abundant ontology. Although it is known that the abundant ontology does not logically preclude endurantism, their combination is rejected because it necessitates massive coincidence between countless objects. In this paper, I establish that the semantic solution is available not only to perdurantists but also to endurantists by showing that there is no problem with such ubiquitous and principled coincidence. Keywords Three-dimensionalism Á Endurance Á Composition Á Vagueness Á Coincidence There is a well-known problem of diachronic vagueness. Intuitively speaking, a car, a vase, a tree seem to go out of existence gradually. But if they did really do that, there would be worldly, or ontic vagueness. We can avoid ontic vagueness if we adopt 'the semantic solution' to vagueness. However, the semantic solution demands an abundant ontology. It was thought that such an ontology is inconsistent with endurantism. Not any more; several philosophers have noticed that the abundant ontology on its own does not preclude endurantism. But the virtue of combining endurantism and the abundant ontology is disputed; the view even has been named 'promiscuous' endurantism. It often meets rejection because it entails that, on a regular basis, countless objects coincide in a way that cannot be accounted for by simple mereology. However, this paper will show that there is no problem with such a regular, principled, well-grounded coincidence. So, the semantic solution is available not only to perdurantists but also to endurantists, and contrary
Philosophia Naturalis, 2012
The main claim that I want to defend in this paper is that the there are logical equivalences between eternalism and perdurantism on the one hand and presentism and endurantism on the other. By "logical equivalence" I mean that one position is entailed and entails the other. As a consequence of this equivalence, it becomes important to inquire into the question whether the dispute between endurantists and perdurantists is authentic, given that Savitt (2006) Dolev (2006) and Dorato (2006) have cast doubts on the fact that the debate between presentism and eternalism is about "what there is". In this respect, I will conclude that also the debate about persistence in time has no ontological consequences, in the sense that there is no real ontological disagreement between the two allegedly opposite positions: as in the case of the presentism/eternalism debate, one can be both a perdurantist and an endurantist, depending on which linguistic framework is preferred. The main claim that I want to defend in this paper is that the there are logical equivalences between eternalism and perdurantism on the one hand and presentism and endurantism on the other. By "logical equivalence" I mean that one position is entailed and entails the other. As a consequence of this equivalence, it becomes important to inquire into the question whether the dispute between endurantists and perdurantists is authentic, given that Savitt (2006) Dolev (2006) and Dorato (2006) have cast doubts on the fact that the debate between presentism and eternalism is about "what there is". In this respect, I will conclude that also the debate about persistence in time has no ontological consequences, in the sense that there is no real ontological disagreement between the two allegedly opposite positions: as 1 My thanks to Florian Fischer, Cord Friebe, Thomas Müller and Thorben Petersen for their valuable comments and criticism concerning a previous version of this paper. All remaining errors are my responsibility.
Philosophia Naturalis, 2012
The main claim that I want to defend in this paper is that the there are logical equivalences between eternalism and perdurantism on the one hand and presentism and endurantism on the other. By "logical equivalence" I mean that one position is entailed and entails the other. As a consequence of this equivalence, it becomes important to inquire into the question whether the dispute between endurantists and perdurantists is authentic, given that and have cast doubts on the fact that the debate between presentism and eternalism is about "what there is". In this respect, I will conclude that also the debate about persistence in time has no ontological consequences, in the sense that there is no real ontological disagreement between the two allegedly opposite positions: as in the case of the presentism/eternalism debate, one can be both a perdurantist and an endurantist, depending on which linguistic framework is preferred.
Constitution, Vague Objects, and Persistence
Prolegomena, 2019
In this paper, I assess the analysis of vagueness of objects in terms of the theory of constitution with respect to the notion of vague identity. Some proponents of the constitution theory see it as an advantage of their account that analysing the spatial and temporal vagueness of objects in terms of the relation of vague constitution avoids commitment to vague identity, which is seen as a controversial notion. I argue that even though the constitution theory may plausibly be applied to the phenomenon of vague boundaries, it fails to account fully for other cases of spatial and temporal vagueness. There are what I call ‘mid-extension’ vagueness cases, in which the tools of the constitution theory applied in the analysis of boundary vagueness are insufficient to avoid commitment to vague identity.
IS ENDURANTISM REALLY MORE PLAUSIBLE THAN PERDURANTISM FROM A COMMON-SENSE PERSPECTIVE?
I will discuss three arguments in favor of perdurantism, the thesis that objects persist by having temporal parts located at different times. Firstly, I will introduce the rival accounts of persistence of perdurantism and endurantism. Then I will discuss three arguments for perdurantism: the problem of temporary intrinsics, the argument from vagueness and the argument from Special Relativity. I will conclude that none of them represents a knock-down argument for perdurantism. However, endurantism faces important difficulties in offering its solutions to the issues at stake, and the solutions proposed are often at odds with commonsense. Therefore, if one of the main problem for perdurantism is its being at odds with commonsense, endurantism is in no better position with respect to this issue.
COMPOSITION VAGUENESS AND PERSISTENCE.pdf
Objects change, and most of the changes an object undergoes do not destroy it but allow it to continue to exist. When an object survives change, we say that it persists.
Philosophical Studies, 2016
David Lewis famously introduces the debate over persistence as follows: Let us say that something persists iff, somehow or other, it exists at various times; this is the neutral word. Something perdures iff it persists by having different temporal parts, or stages, at different times, though no one part of it is wholly present at more than one time; whereas it endures iff it persists by being wholly present at more than one time. (1986: 202) This passage suggests that there are two different theories about how objects persist through time—the perdurantist theory that objects persist through time by having different temporal parts at different times, and the endurantist theory that objects persist through time by being wholly present at different times. This way of framing the debate over persistence involves both an important insight and an important error. Unfortunately , the error is often embraced and the insight is often ignored. This paper aims to correct both of these mistakes, and thus clarify the debate over persistence.
That any filled location of spacetime contains a persisting thing has been defended based on the 'argument from vagueness.' It is often assumed that since the epistemicist account of vagueness blocks the argument from vagueness it facilitates a conservative ontology without gerrymandered objects. It doesn't. The epistemic vagueness of ordinary object predicates such as 'bicycle' requires that objects that can be described as almost-but-not-quite-bicycle exist even though they fall outside the predicate's sharp extension. Since the predicates that begin with 'almost' are vague as well, epistemicism's ontological backdrop is far from the conservative picture it is thought to enable.