The nature of necessity (Clarendon library of logic and philosophy)

About this book

This book one of the first full-length studies of the modalities to emerge from the debate to which Saul Kripke David Lewis Ruth Marcus and others have contributed is an exploraton and defence of the notion of modality "de re " the idea that objects have both essential and accidental properties. The arguement is developed by means of the notion of possible worlds and ranges over key problems including the nature of essence trans-world identity negative existential propositions and the existence of unactual objects in other possible worlds. In the final chapters Professor Plantinga applies his logical theories to the elucidation of two problems in the philosophy of religion: the Problem of Evil and the Ontological Arguement. The first of these the problem of reconciling the moral perfection and omnipotence of God with the existence of evil can he concludes be resolved and the second given a sound formulation. The book ends with an appendix on Quines objection to quantified modal logic.