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Knowledge, Language and Logic: Questions for Quine pp 225–235Cite as

Indefinite Objects of Higher Order

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Part of the book series: Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science ((BSPS,volume 210))

Abstract

The previous essay outlines an account of indeterminate identity, and offers some preliminary illustrations of its application to puzzles about identity through time. We wish now to consider an application to a particular, rigorously formulated theory. The theory of sets is especially apt for this role, since it brings into prominence the Quinean theme of identity conditions: “No entity without identity.” At the same time, our discussion will confront what I will call the Basic Objection to many-valued theories, also due to Quine: that they are simply too messy.1

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References

  1. Terence Parsons. “Indefinite Objects of First Order”, this volume, pp.

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  2. W.V.O. Quine. Philosophy of Logic, 2d ed., Harvard University Press, Cambridge 1986.

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  3. Nathan Salmon. Reference and Essence. Basil Blackwell, Oxford 1988.

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  4. Th. Skolem. “A set theory based on a certain 3-valued logic”, Zeitschrift für Mathematische Logik und Grundlagen der Mathematik 6 (1960).

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  5. P. Suppes Introduction to Logic, van Nostrand, New York 1957.

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  6. Peter van Inwagen. “How to Reason about Vague Objects”, Philosophical Topics 16 (1988); 255–284.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of California, Irvine, USA

    Peter Woodruff

Authors
  1. Peter Woodruff
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Queens College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York, USA

    Alex Orenstein

  2. The Philosophical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Germany

    Petr Kotatko

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© 2000 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Woodruff, P. (2000). Indefinite Objects of Higher Order. In: Orenstein, A., Kotatko, P. (eds) Knowledge, Language and Logic: Questions for Quine. Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science, vol 210. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-3933-5_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-3933-5_17

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-0253-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-011-3933-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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