Eternalism and death's badness

In Joseph Keim Campbell, Michael O'Rourke & Harry Silverstein (eds.), Time and Identity. MIT Press (2010)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

This chapter discusses the metaphysical view referred to by Harry Silverstein as “four-dimensionalism,” but referred to in this chapter as “eternalism.” In contrast to presentism, eternalism posits that purely past and purely future objects and events exist. If a person goes out of existence at the moment of death, the problem arises as to how death is bad for its victim. According to Silverstein, this problem arises from the truth of the “Values Connect with Feelings” thesis, according to which it must be possible for someone to have feelings about a thing in order for that thing to be bad for that person. The badness of death may entail eternalism, but it is for an entirely different reason. Eternalism must be true in order for there to be a time at which death is bad for its victim. These two conflicting views are discussed in this chapter.

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 90,593

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

The Worst Time to Die.Ben Bradley - 2008 - Ethics 118 (2):291-314.
Less good but not bad: In defense of epicureanism about death.Aaron Smuts - 2012 - Pacific Philosophical Quarterly 93 (2):197-227.
Death.Shelly Kagan - 2012 - New Haven: Yale University Press.
The B-Theory of Time and the Fear of Death.Mikel Burley - 2008 - Polish Journal of Philosophy 2 (2):21-38.
Killing and dying.Dan Moller - 2006 - American Philosophical Quarterly 43 (3):235-247.

Analytics

Added to PP
2010-05-19

Downloads
62 (#234,541)

6 months
9 (#144,939)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Ben Bradley
Syracuse University

Citations of this work

Døden som et onde.Carl Tollef Solberg - 2019 - Norsk Filosofisk Tidsskrift 54 (3):167-186.
Harry Silverstein’s Four‐Dimensionalism and the Purported Evil of Death.Mikel Burley - 2008 - International Journal of Philosophical Studies 16 (4):559 – 568.

Add more citations

References found in this work

No references found.

Add more references