Harry Silverstein’s Four‐Dimensionalism and the Purported Evil of Death

International Journal of Philosophical Studies 16 (4):559 – 568 (2008)
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Abstract

In his article 'The Evil of Death' (henceforth: ED) Harry Silverstein argues that a proper refutation of the Epicurean view that death is not an evil requires the adoption of a particular revisionary ontology, which Silverstein, following Quine, calls 'four-dimensionalism'.1 In 'The Evil of Death Revisited' (henceforth: EDR) Silverstein reaffirms his earlier position and responds to several criticisms, including some targeted at his ontology. There remain, however, serious problems with Silverstein's argument, and I shall highlight five major ones below. I conclude that Silverstein has not shown that an appeal to four-dimensionalism facilitates a refutation of Epicurus, although a consideration of some of Silverstein's points helps to indicate the limited scope of the Epicurean thesis.

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Citations of this work

Epicurus, Death, and the Wrongness of Killing.Mikel Burley - 2010 - Inquiry: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Philosophy 53 (1):68-86.
‘The Evil of Death’ Defended: Reply to Burley.Harry Silverstein - 2008 - International Journal of Philosophical Studies 16 (4):569 – 579.

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References found in this work

Four Dimensionalism.Theodore Sider - 1997 - Philosophical Review 106 (2):197-231.
Schopenhauer: 'The World as Will and Representation': Volume 1.Arthur Schopenhauer & E. F. J. Payne - 2010 - New York: Cambridge University Press. Edited by Judith Norman, Alistair Welchman & Christopher Janaway.
Upheavals of Thought.Martha Nussbaum - 2001 - Journal of Religious Ethics 31 (2):325-341.
Upheavals of Thought. The Intelligence of Emotions.Martha C. Nussbaum - 2003 - Tijdschrift Voor Filosofie 65 (1):174-175.

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