The Bounds of Possibility: Puzzles of Modal Variation

The Great Pyramid, Mona Lisa, and an ordinary table could have been different in certain respects, but there are limits. Puzzling arguments suggest that an object is capable of being radically different in a respect if it is capable of being somewhat different. The Bounds of Possibility investigates competing strategies for resolving these puzzles and defends one of them, engaging with foundational questions about the metaphysics of modality.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 448 pages
Publication date: 07 March 2024
Publisher: Oxford University Press

In general, a given object could have been different in certain respects. For example, the Great Pyramid could have been somewhat shorter or taller; the Mona Lisa could have had a somewhat different pattern of colors; an ordinary table could have been made of a somewhat different quantity of wood. But there seem to be limits. It would be odd to suppose that the Great Pyramid could have been thimble-sized; that the Mona Lisa could have had the pattern of colors that actually characterizes The Scream; or that the table could have been made of the very quantity of wood that in fact made some other table. However, there are puzzling arguments that purport to show that so long as an object is capable of being somewhat different in some respect, it is capable of being radically different in that respect. These arguments rely on two tempting thoughts: first, that an object's capacity for moderate variation is a non-contingent matter, and second, that what is possibly possible is simply possible. The Bounds of Possibility systematically investigates competing strategies for resolving these puzzles, and defends one of them. Along the way, it engages with foundational questions about the metaphysics of modality.

In general, a given object could have been different in certain respects. For example, the Great Pyramid could have been somewhat shorter or taller; the Mona Lisa could have had a somewhat different pattern of colors; an ordinary table could have been made of a somewhat different quantity of wood. But there seem to be limits. It would be odd to suppose that the Great Pyramid could have been thimble-sized; that the Mona Lisa could have had the pattern of colors that actually characterizes The Scream; or that the table could have been made of the very quantity of wood that in fact made some other table. However, there are puzzling arguments that purport to show that so long as an object is capable of being somewhat different in some respect, it is capable of being radically different in that respect. These arguments rely on two tempting thoughts: first, that an object's capacity for moderate variation is a non-contingent matter, and second, that what is possibly possible is simply possible. The Bounds of Possibility systematically investigates competing strategies for resolving these puzzles, and defends one of them. Along the way, it engages with foundational questions about the metaphysics of modality.

Weight: 674g
Dimension: 233 x 156 x 29 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780198910770