Combining Texts

Ideas for 'fragments/reports', 'Parts of Classes' and 'Intuitionism: an Introduction'

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2 ideas

7. Existence / C. Structure of Existence / 8. Stuff / a. Pure stuff
We have no idea of a third sort of thing, that isn't an individual, a class, or their mixture [Lewis]
     Full Idea: As yet we have no idea of any third sort of thing that is neither individual nor class nor mixture of the two.
     From: David Lewis (Parts of Classes [1991], 1.2)
     A reaction: You can see that Lewis was a pupil of Quine. I quote this to show how little impression 'stuff' makes on the modern radar. His defence is that stuff may not be a 'thing', but then he seems to think that 'things' exhaust reality (top p.8 and 9).
Atomless gunk is an individual whose parts all have further proper parts [Lewis]
     Full Idea: A blob can represent atomless gunk: an individual whose parts all have further proper parts.
     From: David Lewis (Parts of Classes [1991], 1.8)
     A reaction: This is not the same as 'stuff', since gunk is a precise fusion of all those parts, whereas there is no such precision about stuff. Stuff is neutral as to whether it has atoms, or is endlessly divisible. My love of stuff grows. Laycock is a hero.