Single Idea 15721

[catalogued under 10. Modality / B. Possibility / 9. Counterfactuals]

Full Idea

The subjunctive conditional is seen at its most respectable in the disposition terms. ...The reason is that they are conceived as built-in, enduring structural traits.

Gist of Idea

Counterfactuals are plausible when dispositions are involved, as they imply structures

Source

Willard Quine (Word and Object [1960], §46)

Book Reference

Quine,Willard: 'Word and Object' [MIT 1969], p.222


A Reaction

Surprisingly, this is very sympathetic to a metaphysical view that seems a long way from Quine, since dispositions seem to invite commitment to modal features of reality. But the structural traits are not, of course, modal, in any way!