Lecture
LTP Colloquium 'How to be a Modal Realist à la Bricker'
- Date
- Thursday 19 December 2024
- Time
- Location
-
P.J. Veth
Nonnensteeg 1-3
2311 VJ Leiden - Room
- 0.06
The Leiden University Centre Theoretical Philosophy is pleased to announce a lecture by Dr. Daniel E. Deasy, Associate Professor of Philosophy in the School of Philosophy at University College Dublin (UCD).
In this paper I defend the contingent spotlight theory, a theory of modality analogous to the ‘moving spotlight theory’ in the philosophy of time. I characterise the contingent spotlight theory as combining three core theses: modal a-theory, according to which there is an absolute distinction between actual and merely possible worlds; necessitism, according to which necessarily, everything must exist; and modal spotlight, according to which exactly one fundamental property is contingent, and it is monadic. Traditionally, the contingent spotlight theory has had few defenders, with the notable exception of Philip Bricker (2006, 2008). However, I believe the theory should be taken more seriously than it has been, especially by philosophers who are favourably disposed to Williamson’s (2013) abductive argument for necessitism but who remain unconvinced by Lewis’s (1986) view that actuality is a merely relative property of possible worlds. My defence of the view in this paper consists in describing responses on behalf of the contingent spotlightist to three prominent objections to the view, two of which are due to Lewis (1986). In describing these responses, I develop a new version of the contingent spotlight theory which I argue has significant advantages over Bricker’s version of the view.