Knowledge

Necessity of identity

Source 📝

335:"the man who won the 1968 election" can be used non-rigidly. Kripke argues, that if names are rigid designators, then identity must be necessary, because the names ‘a’ and ‘b’ will be rigid designators of an object x if a is identical to b, and so in every possible world, ‘a’ and ‘b’ will both refer to this same object x, and no other, and there could be no situation in which a might not have been b, otherwise x would not have been identical with itself. 454:. (What pairs (x, y) could be counterexamples? Not pairs of distinct objects, for then the antecedent is false; nor any pair of an object and itself, for then the consequent is true.) If ‘a’ and ‘b’ are rigid designators, it follows that ‘a = b’, if true, is a necessary truth. If ‘a’ and ‘b’ are not rigid designators, no such conclusion follows about the statement ‘a = b’ (though the objects designated by ‘a’ and ‘b’ will be necessarily identical). 334:
are typically not. So we can speak of "Richard Nixon" referring to the same person in all possible worlds, but the description "the man who won the 1968 election" could refer to many different people. According to Kripke, the proper name "Richard Nixon" can only be used rigidly, but the description
326:
in which that object exists. When a name's referent is fixed by the original act of naming, it becomes a rigid designator. Some examples of rigid designators include proper names (i.e. ‘Richard Nixon’), natural kind terms ( i.e. ‘gold’ or ‘H2O’) and some descriptions.
458:
This does not mean that we have knowledge of this necessity. Before the discovery that Hesperus (the evening star) and Phosphorus (the morning star) were the same planet, this fact was not known, and could not have been inferred from
186: 505:
O. It is possible, of course, that we are mistaken about the chemical composition of water, but that does not affect the necessity of identities. What is not being claimed is that water is necessarily H
254: 452: 91: 381: 296: 99: 497:
O' pick out the same object in every possible world, there is no possible world in which 'water' picks out something different from 'H
260: 194: 591: 568:
Burgess, J., ‘On a derivation of the necessity of identity’, Synthese May 2014, Volume 191, Issue 7, pp 1567–1585, p 1567
259:
The first premise is simply postulated: every object is identical to itself. The second is an application of the
339:
Waiving fussy considerations deriving from the fact that x need not have necessary existence, it was clear from
649: 386: 55: 669: 659: 521:
O (though we may not know this, it does not change the fact if it is true), then water is necessarily H
460: 342: 266: 37: 534: 464: 25: 664: 548: 331: 314: 24:
is the thesis that for every object x and object y, if x and y are the same object, it is
8: 318:, Kripke suggested that the principle could be derived directly, assuming what he called 654: 33: 263:: if a = b, then a has all the properties b has, thus from Fa, infer Fb, where F is 28:
that x and y are the same object. The thesis is best known for its association with
542: 319: 307: 323: 643: 474: 322:. A term is a rigid designator when it designates the same object in every 32:, who published it in 1971, although it was first derived by the logician 29: 17: 592:
Identity of Individuals in a Strict Functional Calculus of Second Order
48:
The derivation in Kripke's 'Identity and Necessity' is in three steps:
181:{\displaystyle \forall x\forall y(x=y\to (\Box (x=x)\to \Box (x=y)))} 620:‘Identity and Necessity’ p. 154, there is a similar argument in 577:
Kripke, S. ‘Identity and Necessity’, in Milton K. Munitz (ed.),
478: 383:
and Leibniz’s law that identity is an ‘internal’ relation:
389: 345: 269: 249:{\displaystyle \forall x\forall y(x=y\to \Box (x=y))} 197: 102: 58: 607:
Quine, W.V.O., ‘Three Grades of Modal Involvement’,
298:. The third follows by elementary predicate logic. 446: 375: 330:Proper names are typically rigid designators, but 290: 248: 180: 85: 641: 581:. New York University Press. pp. 135-164 (1971) 36:in 1947, and later, in simplified form, by 447:{\displaystyle (x)(y)(x=y\to \Box (x=y))} 642: 43: 501:O'. Therefore, water is necessarily H 473:The principle can also be applied to 301: 86:{\displaystyle \forall x\Box (x=x)} 13: 282: 204: 198: 109: 103: 59: 14: 681: 493:O. Since the terms 'water' and 'H 627: 614: 601: 584: 571: 562: 441: 438: 426: 420: 408: 405: 399: 396: 390: 370: 358: 352: 346: 285: 273: 243: 240: 228: 222: 210: 175: 172: 169: 157: 151: 148: 136: 130: 127: 115: 80: 68: 1: 376:{\displaystyle (x)\Box (x=x)} 7: 528: 291:{\displaystyle \Box (a=\_)} 261:principle of substitutivity 10: 686: 579:Identity and Individuation 305: 609:Journal of Symbolic Logic 596:Journal of Symbolic Logic 633:Naming and Necessity p.3 555: 590:Marcus, Ruth Barcan, ‘ 448: 377: 292: 250: 182: 87: 650:Identity (philosophy) 449: 378: 332:definite descriptions 306:Further information: 293: 251: 183: 88: 22:necessity of identity 622:Naming and Necessity 549:Naming and Necessity 463:. Thus there can be 387: 343: 315:Naming and Necessity 267: 195: 100: 56: 44:Kripke's derivation 444: 373: 288: 246: 178: 83: 34:Ruth Barcan Marcus 670:Modal metaphysics 660:Concepts in logic 485:O, then water is 320:rigid designation 302:Rigid designation 677: 634: 631: 625: 618: 612: 611:, 1953, 168-169. 605: 599: 588: 582: 575: 569: 566: 543:Rigid designator 461:first principles 453: 451: 450: 445: 382: 380: 379: 374: 308:Rigid designator 297: 295: 294: 289: 255: 253: 252: 247: 187: 185: 184: 179: 92: 90: 89: 84: 685: 684: 680: 679: 678: 676: 675: 674: 640: 639: 638: 637: 632: 628: 619: 615: 606: 602: 589: 585: 576: 572: 567: 563: 558: 531: 524: 520: 508: 504: 500: 496: 492: 484: 388: 385: 384: 344: 341: 340: 310: 304: 268: 265: 264: 196: 193: 192: 101: 98: 97: 57: 54: 53: 46: 12: 11: 5: 683: 673: 672: 667: 662: 657: 652: 636: 635: 626: 613: 600: 598:, 1947, 12-15. 583: 570: 560: 559: 557: 554: 553: 552: 545: 540: 530: 527: 522: 518: 506: 502: 498: 494: 490: 482: 456: 455: 443: 440: 437: 434: 431: 428: 425: 422: 419: 416: 413: 410: 407: 404: 401: 398: 395: 392: 372: 369: 366: 363: 360: 357: 354: 351: 348: 324:possible world 303: 300: 287: 284: 281: 278: 275: 272: 257: 256: 245: 242: 239: 236: 233: 230: 227: 224: 221: 218: 215: 212: 209: 206: 203: 200: 189: 177: 174: 171: 168: 165: 162: 159: 156: 153: 150: 147: 144: 141: 138: 135: 132: 129: 126: 123: 120: 117: 114: 111: 108: 105: 94: 82: 79: 76: 73: 70: 67: 64: 61: 45: 42: 38:W. V. O. Quine 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 682: 671: 668: 666: 663: 661: 658: 656: 653: 651: 648: 647: 645: 630: 623: 617: 610: 604: 597: 593: 587: 580: 574: 565: 561: 551: 550: 546: 544: 541: 539: 537: 533: 532: 526: 516: 512: 511:conditionally 488: 480: 476: 475:natural kinds 471: 469: 467: 462: 435: 432: 429: 423: 417: 414: 411: 402: 393: 367: 364: 361: 355: 349: 338: 337: 336: 333: 328: 325: 321: 317: 316: 312:In the later 309: 299: 279: 276: 270: 262: 237: 234: 231: 225: 219: 216: 213: 207: 201: 190: 166: 163: 160: 154: 145: 142: 139: 133: 124: 121: 118: 112: 106: 95: 77: 74: 71: 65: 62: 51: 50: 49: 41: 39: 35: 31: 27: 23: 19: 629: 621: 616: 608: 603: 595: 586: 578: 573: 564: 547: 536:A posteriori 535: 514: 510: 486: 472: 466:a posteriori 465: 457: 329: 313: 311: 258: 47: 21: 15: 665:Modal logic 487:necessarily 30:Saul Kripke 18:modal logic 644:Categories 517:water is H 655:Necessity 538:necessity 468:necessity 424:◻ 421:→ 356:◻ 283:_ 271:◻ 226:◻ 223:→ 205:∀ 199:∀ 155:◻ 152:→ 134:◻ 128:→ 110:∀ 104:∀ 66:◻ 60:∀ 40:in 1953. 26:necessary 529:See also 509:O, but 20:, the 624:p.104 556:Notes 479:water 477:. If 481:is H 191:(3) 96:(2) 52:(1) 594:’, 525:O. 16:In 646:: 515:if 513:, 470:. 523:2 519:2 507:2 503:2 499:2 495:2 491:2 489:H 483:2 442:) 439:) 436:y 433:= 430:x 427:( 418:y 415:= 412:x 409:( 406:) 403:y 400:( 397:) 394:x 391:( 371:) 368:x 365:= 362:x 359:( 353:) 350:x 347:( 286:) 280:= 277:a 274:( 244:) 241:) 238:y 235:= 232:x 229:( 220:y 217:= 214:x 211:( 208:y 202:x 188:. 176:) 173:) 170:) 167:y 164:= 161:x 158:( 149:) 146:x 143:= 140:x 137:( 131:( 125:y 122:= 119:x 116:( 113:y 107:x 93:. 81:) 78:x 75:= 72:x 69:( 63:x

Index

modal logic
necessary
Saul Kripke
Ruth Barcan Marcus
W. V. O. Quine
principle of substitutivity
Rigid designator
Naming and Necessity
rigid designation
possible world
definite descriptions
first principles
a posteriori necessity
natural kinds
water
A posteriori necessity
Rigid designator
Naming and Necessity
Identity of Individuals in a Strict Functional Calculus of Second Order
Categories
Identity (philosophy)
Necessity
Concepts in logic
Modal logic
Modal metaphysics

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.