Showing posts with label haeecceities. Show all posts
Showing posts with label haeecceities. Show all posts

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Haecceities, strong essentiality of origins and science

  1. (Premise) If essentiality of origins doesn't hold, then every particle has a haecceity.
  2. (Premise) A haecceity of x is an intrinsic property of x.
  3. (Premise) A haecceity of x isn't a physical property of x or a function of any physical properties of x.
  4. (Premise) There is a particle each of whose intrinsic properties is a physical property or a function of physical properties.
  5. Therefore, there is a particle that lacks a haecceity. (2-4)
  6. Therefore, essentiality of origins holds. (1, 5)
Why believe (1)? Because if there are no haecceities then the only plausible account of transworld identity is that x in w1 is identical with y in w2 if and only if x and y have the same origins. And this forces essentiality of origins.
I think the problematic premise is (4). But it is still somewhat plausible.