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Final version forthcoming in Pacific Philosophical Quarterly.
| Content Provider | CiteSeerX |
|---|---|
| Author | Tahko, Tuomas E. |
| Abstract | A minimal truthmaker for a given proposition is the smallest portion of reality which makes this proposition true. Minimal truthmakers are frequently mentioned in the literature, but there has been no systematic account of what they are or of their importance. In this paper we shall clarify the notion of a minimal truthmaker and argue that there is reason to think that at least some propositions have minimal truthmakers. We shall then argue that the notion can play a useful role in truthmaker theory, by helping to explain the truth of certain propositions as precisely as possible. Minimal truthmakers are frequently mentioned in the literature, and have been referred to as being ‘of quite special importance for metaphysics ’ (Armstrong 2004, 19). However, there has been no systematic account of what minimal truthmakers are, or a specification of why they are so important. In this paper we make a start on a systematic treatment of these issues. We shall provide an overview of the rather fragmentary literature on minimal truthmakers and suggest a number of improvements to the definition and application of this notion. After sketching a general account of truthmaking (section I), we shall consider how minimal |
| File Format | |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Subject Keyword | Certain Proposition Fragmentary Literature Truthmaker Theory Minimal Truthmaker Useful Role Pacific Philosophical Quarterly Special Importance Systematic Account Minimal Truthmakers Final Version Forthcoming Systematic Treatment General Account |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
