Facing the Future: Agents and Choices in Our Indeterminist WorldHere is an important new theory of human action, a theory that assumes actions are founded on choices made by agents who face an open future. It is a theory that makes indeterminism not only intelligible but illuminating. Tools from philosophy of language and philosophical logic help generate a full-scale account of agents "seeing to it that." The authors then proceed to clarify a variety of action-related topics such as determinism vs. indeterminism, imperatives, promises, strategies, joint agency, "could have done otherwise," deontic constructions, and assertions about a not yet settled future. |
Contents
Foundations of indeterminism | 131 |
Applications of the achievement stit | 253 |
Applications of the deliberative stit | 293 |
Strategies | 339 |
Proofs and models | 379 |
Lists for reference | 459 |
| 475 | |
| 483 | |
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Common terms and phrases
A& a stit AC structure achievement stit action Admh(s Ahab assertion problem backward branching Barcan formula BT+I+ BT+I+AC busy choice sequence busy choosers causal chain chapter Chellas choice equivalent Choicem concept consider context parameter cstit d'Artagnan defined definition deliberative stit deontic logic discussion domain embedded evaluation example F-companion set fact false finite future g+(m guarantee h₁ h₂ hence idea il>w imperative implies indeterminism indeterministic Instant iTree lands heads language Lemma m₁ modal logic negation negative condition non-agentive Oblg Oblg:[a dstit obligation outcome paraphrase possible choice postulate promising PROOF proposition Queequeg refref represent s₁ semantic sense set of histories settled true speech act ẞ stit stand-alone sentences stit sentence stit theory tense tense logic theorem theory of strategies Thin Red Line truth value w₁ witness word-giving
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Page 4 - The beginning of sense, not to say wisdom, is to realize that 'doing an action', as used in philosophy,1 is a highly abstract expression it is a stand-in used in the place of any (or almost any?) verb with a personal subject, in the same sort of way that 'thing...