Abstract
States of affairs are considered as ontologically basic. Different from similar accounts, these states of affairs are introduced as simple occurrences or items of a certain kind. The ontological importance of these occurrences lies in their semantical function as exemplars for the introduction of the most basic linguistic devices. The ontological basis proposed is particularist. Universals are an aspect of our routine behaviour as we neglect the differences of particular properties of things. Abstract objects are produced in our routine, language-dependent operations if we leave aside the fact that we usually operate with some definite material.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Armstrong, D. M.: 1978, Universals and Scientific Realism, 2 vols., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Armstrong, D. M.: 1997, A World of States of Affairs, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Fine, K.: 1991, ‘The Study of Ontology’, Noûs 25, 263–294.
Frege, G.: 1969, Funktion, Begriff, Bedeutung. Fünf logische Studien, G. Patzig (Hrsg.). Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen.
Künne, W.: 1983, Abstrakte Gegenstände, Suhrkamp, Frankfurt a. M.
Lorenzen, P.: 1962, ‘Gleichheit und Abstraktion’, Ratio 4, 77–81.
Puntel, L. B.: 1990, Grundlagen einer Theorie der Wahrheit, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York.
Quine, W. V. O.: 1953, From a Logical Point of View, Harvard University Press, Cambridge MA.
de Rijk, L. M.: 1967, Logica Modernorum, Vol. II, Part 1: The Origin and EarlyDevelopment of the Theory of Supposition, Van Gorcum, Assen.
Stekeler-Weithofer, P.: 1986, Grundprobleme der Logik. Elemente einer Kritik der formalenVernunft, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York.
Tegtmeier, E.: 1992, Grundzüge einer kategorialen Ontologie. Dinge, Eigenschaften,Beziehungen, Sachverhalte, Alber, Freiburg/München.
Thiel, C.: 1979, Gottlob Frege: Die Abstraktion, in J. Speck (ed.), Grundproblemeder großen Philosophen. Philosophie der Gegenwart I, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen, pp. 9–44.
Thomas Aquinas: 1865, In librum Boetii de Trinitate expositio, Opera 17. Petrus Fiaccadorus, Parma.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kraml, H. States of affairs. Erkenntnis 48, 311–324 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005446028574
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005446028574