Single Idea 23283

[catalogued under 10. Modality / A. Necessity / 10. Impossibility]

Full Idea

Any notion of necessity must carry with it a corresponding notion of impossibility, …but it can make a difference which one of them presents itself first and more naturally.

Gist of Idea

Necessity implies possibility, but in experience it matters which comes first

Source

Bernard Williams (Practical Necessity [1982], p.127)

Book Reference

Williams,Bernard: 'Moral Luck: Papers 1973-1980' [CUP 1981], p.127


A Reaction

I like this because it connects modality with experience, rather than with formal logic. It seems right that in life we immediately see either a necessity or an impossibility, and inferring the other case is an afterthought.