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Single Idea 14653

[filed under theme 9. Objects / D. Essence of Objects / 9. Essence and Properties ]

Full Idea

Socrates has P essentially if he has P in every world, or has it in every world in which he exists, or - most plausible of all - has P in the actual world and has its complement [non-P] in no world.

Gist of Idea

X is essentially P if it is P in every world, or in every X-world, or in the actual world (and not ¬P elsewhere)

Source

Alvin Plantinga (World and Essence [1970], Intro)

Book Ref

Plantinga,Alvin: 'Essays in the Metaphysics of Modality' [OUP 2003], p.49

A Reaction

These strike me as mere necessary properties, which are not the same thing at all. Essences give rise to the other properties, but Plantinga offers nothing to do the job (and especially not 'Socrateity'!). Essences must explain, say I!

The 11 ideas from 'World and Essence'

16435 Plantinga proposes necessary existent essences as surrogates for the nonexistent things [Plantinga, by Stalnaker]
14653 X is essentially P if it is P in every world, or in every X-world, or in the actual world (and not ¬P elsewhere) [Plantinga]
14652 'De re' modality is as clear as 'de dicto' modality, because they are logically equivalent [Plantinga]
14655 The 'identity criteria' of a name are a group of essential and established facts [Plantinga]
14654 Properties are 'trivially essential' if they are instantiated by every object in every possible world [Plantinga]
14658 'Being Socrates' and 'being identical with Socrates' characterise Socrates, so they are among his properties [Plantinga]
14656 Does Socrates have essential properties, plus a unique essence (or 'haecceity') which entails them? [Plantinga]
14657 Does 'being identical with Socrates' name a property? I can think of no objections to it [Plantinga]
14659 We can imagine being beetles or alligators, so it is possible we might have such bodies [Plantinga]
14660 If a property is ever essential, can it only ever be an essential property? [Plantinga]
14661 Essences are instantiated, and are what entails a thing's properties and lack of properties [Plantinga]