Adam Elga has presented an anti-thermodynamic process as a counterexample to Lewis’s default semantics for counterfactuals. The outstanding reaction of Jonathan Schaffer and Boris Kment is revisionary. It sacrifices Lewis’s aim of defining causation in terms of counterfactual dependence. Lewis himself suggested an alternative: «counter-entropic funnybusiness» should make for dissimilarity. But how is this alternative to be spelled out? I discuss a recent proposal: include special science laws, among them the laws of thermodynamics. Although the proposal fails, it serves to uncover the limits of Elga’s example.

Should special science laws be written into the semantics of counterfactuals? / D. Dohrn. - In: KAIROS. - ISSN 1647-659X. - 22:1(2019), pp. 86-108. [10.2478/kjps-2019-0010]

Should special science laws be written into the semantics of counterfactuals?

D. Dohrn
2019

Abstract

Adam Elga has presented an anti-thermodynamic process as a counterexample to Lewis’s default semantics for counterfactuals. The outstanding reaction of Jonathan Schaffer and Boris Kment is revisionary. It sacrifices Lewis’s aim of defining causation in terms of counterfactual dependence. Lewis himself suggested an alternative: «counter-entropic funnybusiness» should make for dissimilarity. But how is this alternative to be spelled out? I discuss a recent proposal: include special science laws, among them the laws of thermodynamics. Although the proposal fails, it serves to uncover the limits of Elga’s example.
Counterfactuals; Lewis; Similarity; Special Science Laws; Elga
Settore M-FIL/05 - Filosofia e Teoria dei Linguaggi
   Dipartimenti di Eccellenza 2018-2022 - Dipartimento di FILOSOFIA
   MINISTERO DELL'ISTRUZIONE E DEL MERITO
2019
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/718366
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