eBook - ePub

The Metaphysics of Contingency

Name: The Metaphysics of Contingency
ISBN: 9781350277168

A Theory of Objects' Abilities and Dispositions

Ferenc Huoranszki,

248 pages
English
ePUB (mobile friendly)
Available on iOS & Android

eBook - ePub

The Metaphysics of Contingency

A Theory of Objects' Abilities and Dispositions

Ferenc Huoranszki,

About this book

Philosophers approach the problem of possibility in two markedly different ways: with reference to worlds, whereby an event is possible if there is a world in which it occurs, and with reference to modal properties, whereby an event is a possible manifestation of a property of some substance or object. Showing how the world-account cannot properly explain the nature of possibilities within worlds, Ferenc Huoranszki argues that the latter approach is more plausible. He develops a theory of contingent possibilities grounded in a distinction between abilities and dispositions as real, first-order modal properties of objects, with fundamentally distinct ontological roles. By understanding abilities as first-order modal properties, and by linking such modal properties to counterfactual conditionals, Huoranszki argues we can distinguish between variably generic or specific abilities and identify more or less abstract possibilities in a world. In doing so, he furthers our understanding of how we reason with possibilities in both ordinary and theoretical contexts. Providing a novel account of dispositions, abilities and their capacity to explain modality, this book advances current debates in contemporary metaphysics.

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Yes, you can access The Metaphysics of Contingency by Ferenc Huoranszki in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Filosofia & Logica in filosofia. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.