What do propositions explain? Inflationary vs. deflationary perspectives and the case of singular propositions

In this paper we take up the question of the explanatory significance of the notion of propositional content. Our first goal is to disentangle two types of approach: According to what we call inflationism, propositions should be taken seriously enough to expect explanatory payoffs from them. The alt...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: García Carpintero, Manuel, Palmira, Michele
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2022
País:España
Institución:Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Repositorio:Docta Complutense
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/71525
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/71525
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:164.1
Singular proposition
General proposition
Proposition
Metaphysics of propositions
Lógica (Filosofía)
11 Lógica
Descripción
Sumario:In this paper we take up the question of the explanatory significance of the notion of propositional content. Our first goal is to disentangle two types of approach: According to what we call inflationism, propositions should be taken seriously enough to expect explanatory payoffs from them. The alternative deflationary approach rejects this claim. Our second goal is to explore the inflationism vs. deflationism contrast in depth by focusing on the distinction between singular and general propositions. We argue that inflationism fails and outline a variety of deflationism that offers the best prospects for explaining the singular/general divide.