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Full Idea
Truth enables us to carry various reports around under certain descriptions ('what Iain said') without all the bothersome detail. Similarly, conditionals enable us to transmit a record of proof without its detail.
Gist of Idea
Conditionals are just a shorthand for some proof, leaving out the details
Source
Stephen Read (Formal and Material Consequence [1994], 'Repres')
Book Ref
'Philosophy of Logic: an anthology', ed/tr. Jacquette,Dale [Blackwell 2002], p.244
A Reaction
This is his proposed Redundancy Theory of conditionals. It grows out of the problem with Modus Ponens mentioned in Idea 14184. To say that there is always an implied 'proof' seems a large claim.
Related Idea
Idea 14184 In modus ponens the 'if-then' premise contributes nothing if the conclusion follows anyway [Read]
| 14187 | If logic is topic-neutral that means it delves into all subjects, rather than having a pure subject matter [Read] |
| 14188 | Not all arguments are valid because of form; validity is just true premises and false conclusion being impossible [Read] |
| 14182 | If the logic of 'taller of' rests just on meaning, then logic may be the study of merely formal consequence [Read] |
| 14184 | In modus ponens the 'if-then' premise contributes nothing if the conclusion follows anyway [Read] |
| 14186 | Logical connectives contain no information, but just record combination relations between facts [Read] |
| 14185 | Conditionals are just a shorthand for some proof, leaving out the details [Read] |
| 14183 | Maybe arguments are only valid when suppressed premises are all stated - but why? [Read] |