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Single Idea 21544

[filed under theme 3. Truth / B. Truthmakers / 6. Making Negative Truths ]

Full Idea

It seems that when a proposition is false, something does not subsist which would subsist if the proposition were true.

Gist of Idea

It seems that when a proposition is false, something must fail to subsist

Source

Bertrand Russell (Meinong on Complexes and Assumptions [1904], p.76)

Book Ref

Russell,Bertrand: 'Essays in Analysis', ed/tr. Lackey,Douglas [George Braziller 1973], p.76


A Reaction

This looks to me like a commitment by Russell to the truthmaker principle. The negations of false propositions are made true by some failure of existence in the world.

Related Idea

Idea 21543 If p is false, then believing not-p is knowing a truth, so negative propositions must exist [Russell]


The 10 ideas with the same theme [how negative truths can have truthmakers]:

It seems that when a proposition is false, something must fail to subsist [Russell]
Negative existentials have 'totality facts' as truthmakers [Armstrong, by Lewis]
Negative truths have as truthmakers all states of affairs relevant to the truth [Armstrong]
The nature of arctic animals is truthmaker for the absence of penguins there [Armstrong]
If it were true that nothing at all existed, would that have a truthmaker? [Lewis]
If nothing exists, no truthmakers could make 'Nothing exists' true [Sorensen]
It is implausible that claims about non-existence are about existing things [Merricks]
There are different types of truthmakers for different types of negative truth [MacBride]
There aren't enough positive states out there to support all the negative truths [MacBride]
Without truthmakers, negative truths must be ungrounded [Cameron]