In
metaphysics
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...
and the
philosophy of language
In analytic philosophy, philosophy of language investigates the nature of language and the relations between language, language users, and the world. Investigations may include inquiry into the nature of meaning, intentionality, reference, the ...
, the round square copula is a common example of the
dual copula strategy used in reference to the problem of
nonexistent object
An object of the mind is an object that exists in the imagination, but which, in the real world, can only be represented or modeled. Some such objects are abstractions, literary concepts, or fictional scenarios.
Closely related are intentional o ...
s as well as their relation to problems in modern
philosophy of language
In analytic philosophy, philosophy of language investigates the nature of language and the relations between language, language users, and the world. Investigations may include inquiry into the nature of meaning, intentionality, reference, the ...
.
[
The issue arose, most notably, between the theories of ]contemporary philosopher
Contemporary philosophy is the present period in the history of Western philosophy beginning at the early 20th century with the increasing professionalization of the discipline and the rise of analytic and continental philosophy.
The phrase "c ...
s Alexius Meinong
Alexius Meinong Ritter von Handschuchsheim (17 July 1853 – 27 November 1920) was an Austrian philosopher, a realist known for his unique ontology. He also made contributions to philosophy of mind and theory of value.
Life
Alexius Meinon ...
(see Meinong's 1904 book ''Investigations in Theory of Objects and Psychology'') and Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, ar ...
(see Russell's 1905 article "On Denoting
"On Denoting" is an essay by Bertrand Russell. It was published in the philosophy journal ''Mind'' in 1905. In it, Russell introduces and advocates his theory of denoting phrases, according to which definite descriptions and other "denoting phras ...
"). Russell's critique of Meinong's theory of objects, also known as the Russellian view, became the established view on the problem of nonexistent objects.
In late modern philosophy
Western philosophy encompasses the philosophical thought and work of the Western world. Historically, the term refers to the philosophical thinking of Western culture, beginning with the ancient Greek philosophy of the pre-Socratics. The word ' ...
, the concept of the "square circle" (german: viereckiger Kreis) had also been discussed before in Gottlob Frege
Friedrich Ludwig Gottlob Frege (; ; 8 November 1848 – 26 July 1925) was a German philosopher, logician, and mathematician. He was a mathematics professor at the University of Jena, and is understood by many to be the father of analytic ph ...
's ''The Foundations of Arithmetic
''The Foundations of Arithmetic'' (german: Die Grundlagen der Arithmetik) is a book by Gottlob Frege, published in 1884, which investigates the philosophical foundations of arithmetic. Frege refutes other theories of number and develops his own ...
'' (1884).
The dual copula strategy
The strategy employed is the dual copula strategy,[ also known as the dual predication approach, which is used to make a distinction between relations of ]properties
Property is the ownership of land, resources, improvements or other tangible objects, or intellectual property.
Property may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Property (mathematics)
Philosophy and science
* Property (philosophy), in philosophy an ...
and individuals. It entails creating a sentence that is not supposed to make sense by forcing the term "is" into ambiguous meaning.
The dual copula strategy was originally brought to prominence in contemporary philosophy
Contemporary philosophy is the present period in the history of Western philosophy beginning at the early 20th century with the increasing professionalization of the discipline and the rise of analytic and continental philosophy.
The phrase " ...
by Ernst Mally
Ernst Mally (; ; 11 October 1879 – 8 March 1944) was an Austrian analytic philosopher, initially affiliated with Alexius Meinong's Graz School of object theory. Mally was one of the founders of deontic logic and is mainly known for his contri ...
.[Mally, Ernst, ''Gegenstandstheoretische Grundlagen der Logik und Logistik'', Leipzig: Barth, 1912]
§33
/ref> Other proponents of this approach include: Héctor-Neri Castañeda, William J. Rapaport, and Edward N. Zalta.[Dale Jacquette, ''Meinongian Logic: The Semantics of Existence and Nonexistence'', Walter de Gruyter, 1996, p. 17.]
By borrowing Zalta's notational method (''Fb'' stands for ''b exemplifies'' the property of being ''F''; ''bF'' stands for ''b encodes'' the property of being ''F''), and using a revised version of Meinongian object theory which makes use of a dual copula distinction (''MOTdc''), we can say that the object called "the round square" encodes the property of being round, the property of being square, all properties implied by these, and no others. But it is true that there are also infinitely many properties being exemplified by an object called the round square (and, really, any object)—e.g. the property of not being a computer, and the property of not being a pyramid. Note that this strategy has forced "is" to abandon its predicative use, and now functions abstractly.
When one now analyzes the round square copula using the ''MOTdc'', one will find that it now avoids the three common paradoxes
A paradox is a logically self-contradictory statement or a statement that runs contrary to one's expectation. It is a statement that, despite apparently valid reasoning from true premises, leads to a seemingly self-contradictory or a logically u ...
: (1) The violation of the law of noncontradiction
In logic, the law of non-contradiction (LNC) (also known as the law of contradiction, principle of non-contradiction (PNC), or the principle of contradiction) states that contradictory propositions cannot both be true in the same sense at the sa ...
, (2) The paradox of claiming the property of existence without actually existing, and (3) producing counterintuitive consequences. Firstly, the ''MOTdc'' shows that the round square does not exemplify the property of being round, but the property of being round and square. Thus, there is no subsequent contradiction. Secondly, it avoids the conflict of existence/non-existence by claiming non-physical existence: by the ''MOTdc'', it can only be said that the round square simply does not exemplify the property of occupying a region in space. Finally, the ''MOTdc'' avoids counterintuitive consequences (like a 'thing' having the property of nonexistence) by stressing that the round square copula can be said merely to encode the property of being round and square, not actually exemplifying it. Thus, logically, it does ''not'' belong to any set or class.
In the end, what the ''MOTdc'' really does is create a ''kind'' of object: a nonexistent object that is very different from the objects we might normally think of. Occasionally, references to this notion, while obscure, may be called "Meinongian objects."
The dual property strategy
Making use of the notion of "non-physically existent" objects is controversial in philosophy, and created the buzz for many articles and books on the subject during the first half of the 20th century. There are other strategies for avoiding the problems of Meinong's theories, but they suffer from serious problems as well.
First is the dual property strategy,[ also known as the nuclear–extranuclear strategy.][
Mally introduced the dual property strategy,][Dale Jacquette, ''Meinongian Logic: The Semantics of Existence and Nonexistence'', Walter de Gruyter, 1996, p. 16.] but did not endorse it.[ The dual property strategy was eventually adopted by Meinong.][ Other proponents of this approach include: ]Terence Parsons
Terence Dwight Parsons (1939-2022) was an American philosopher, specializing in philosophy of language and metaphysics. He was emeritus professor of philosophy at UCLA.
Life and career
Parsons was born in Endicott, New York and graduated from th ...
and Richard Routley
Richard Sylvan (13 December 1935 – 16 June 1996) was a New Zealand–born philosopher, logician, and environmentalist.
Biography
Sylvan was born Francis Richard Routley in Levin, New Zealand, and his early work is cited with this surname. ...
.[
According to Meinong, it is possible to distinguish the ]natural
Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...
(nuclear) properties of an object, from its external (extranuclear) properties. Parsons identifies four types of extranuclear properties: ontological
In metaphysics, ontology is the philosophical study of being, as well as related concepts such as existence, becoming, and reality.
Ontology addresses questions like how entities are grouped into categories and which of these entities exi ...
, modal, intentional, technical
Technical may refer to:
* Technical (vehicle), an improvised fighting vehicle
* Technical analysis, a discipline for forecasting the future direction of prices through the study of past market data
* Technical drawing, showing how something is co ...
—however, philosophers dispute Parson's claims in number and kind. Additionally, Meinong states that nuclear properties are either constitutive or consecutive, meaning properties that are either explicitly contained or implied/included in a description of the object. Essentially the strategy denies the possibility for objects to have only ''one'' property, and instead they may have only one ''nuclear'' property. Meinong himself, however, found this solution to be inadequate in several ways and its inclusion only served to muddle the definition of an object.
The other worlds strategy
There is also the other worlds strategy.[ Similar to the ideas explained with ]possible worlds Possible Worlds may refer to:
* Possible worlds, concept in philosophy
* ''Possible Worlds'' (play), 1990 play by John Mighton
** ''Possible Worlds'' (film), 2000 film by Robert Lepage, based on the play
* Possible Worlds (studio)
* ''Possible Wo ...
theory, this strategy employs the view that logical principles and the law of contradiction have limits, but without assuming that everything is true. Enumerated and championed by Graham Priest
Graham Priest (born 1948) is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the CUNY Graduate Center, as well as a regular visitor at the University of Melbourne, where he was Boyce Gibson Professor of Philosophy and also at the University of St And ...
, who was heavily influenced by Routley, this strategy forms the notion of "noneism
Noneism, also known as modal Meinongianism (named after Alexius Meinong), is a theory in logic and metaphysics. It holds that some things do not exist. It was first coined by Richard Routley in 1980 and appropriated again in 2005 by Graham Pri ...
". In short, assuming there exist infinite possible and impossible worlds, objects are freed from necessarily existing in all worlds, but instead may exist in impossible worlds (where the law of contradiction does not apply, for example) and not in the actual world. Unfortunately, accepting this strategy entails accepting the host of problems that come with it, such as the ontological status of impossible worlds.
See also
*List of paradoxes
This list includes well known paradoxes, grouped thematically. The grouping is approximate, as paradoxes may fit into more than one category. This list collects only scenarios that have been called a paradox by at least one source and have their ...
*Platonic realism
Platonic realism is the philosophical position that universals or abstract objects exist objectively and outside of human minds. It is named after the Greek philosopher Plato who applied realism to such universals, which he considered idea ...
*Theory of descriptions
The theory of descriptions is the philosopher Bertrand Russell's most significant contribution to the philosophy of language. It is also known as Russell's theory of descriptions (commonly abbreviated as RTD). In short, Russell argued that the ...
*Wooden iron
{{Rhetoric
Wooden iron (German: ''hölzernes Eisen'') is a polemical term often used in philosophical rhetoric to describe the impossibility of an opposing argument. The term is a German proverbial oxymoron, which synthesizes the concept of the ...
References
Sources
* {{cite book
, last=Zalta
, first=Edward N.
, author-link=Edward N. Zalta
, year=1983
, title=Abstract Objects: An Introduction to Axiomatic Metaphysics
, series=Synthese Library
, volume=160
, location=Dordrecht, Netherlands
, publisher=D. Reidel Publishing Company
, isbn=978-90-277-1474-9
Analytic philosophy
Abstract object theory
Paradoxes
20th-century philosophy