Single Idea 5745

[catalogued under 4. Formal Logic / D. Modal Logic ML / 1. Modal Logic]

Full Idea

Quine charges quantified modal systems of logic with giving rise to unintended sense or nonsense, committing us to an incomprehensible ontology, and entailing an implausible or unsustainable Aristotelian essentialism.

Clarification

'Quantified modal systems' use quantifiers in possible worlds instead of necessity/possibility

Gist of Idea

Quine says quantified modal logic creates nonsense, bad ontology, and false essentialism

Source

comment on Willard Quine (Existence and Quantification [1966]) by Joseph Melia - Modality Ch.3

Book Reference

Melia,Joseph: 'Modality' [Acumen 2003], p.63


A Reaction

A nice summary. Personally I like essentialism in accounts of science (see Nature|Laws of Nature|Essentialism), so would like to save it in metaphysics. Possible worlds ontology may be very surprising, rather than 'incomprehensible'.