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Chapter 10 - Presentism

from Part III - Metaphysics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 April 2020

Jamin Asay
Affiliation:
The University of Hong Kong
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Summary

It has long been thought that presentists face a difficulty squaring their ontological view with respectable truthmaker theory. Presentists either fall foul of the requirements of truthmaking or must commit to unfortunate ontological posits in order to satisfy them, thereby spoiling the supposed advantages of their view. Given the enormity of responses that have been generated to this objection, one could be forgiven for thinking that there must be some palatable response available to presentists. This book inclines toward the view that presentists, as compared to eternalists, have only inferior options available to them when it comes to the accounting of truths involving the past. The available replies to legitimate questions about truthmaking favor eternalism over presentism. What is offered in this chapter is a perspective on the presentism debate that applies a conception of truthmaking as ontological accounting. It poses a dilemma to presentism. Either the view fails to do justice to the task of ontological accountability, or – if it succeeds – it results in a view that is less ontologically satisfying than eternalism.

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Chapter
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A Theory of Truthmaking
Metaphysics, Ontology, and Reality
, pp. 200 - 222
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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  • Presentism
  • Jamin Asay, The University of Hong Kong
  • Book: A Theory of Truthmaking
  • Online publication: 18 April 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108759465.011
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  • Presentism
  • Jamin Asay, The University of Hong Kong
  • Book: A Theory of Truthmaking
  • Online publication: 18 April 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108759465.011
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Presentism
  • Jamin Asay, The University of Hong Kong
  • Book: A Theory of Truthmaking
  • Online publication: 18 April 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108759465.011
Available formats
×