The Non‐Occurrence of Events

Bibliographic Data

ID10352452
AuthorsNeil McDonnell (0000-0001-7279-5277, University of Glasgow, corresponding author)
Year2017
Volume99
Issue2
Pages269-285
Publication date2017-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePhilosophy and Phenomenological Research (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0031-8205 • E-ISSN: 1933-1592
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/phpr.12476
OpenAlexW2771174021
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited25

event occurs.Yet once we attend to the question, we surely see that it has no determinate answer.(Lewis 2004, 186) Lewis 's original (1973) counterfactual analysis of causation states that one event is a cause of another iff there exists a chain of counterfactual dependence between them.One event counterfactually depends on another iff the following counterfactual conditional (or causal conditional) is true:This is to be read as follows: if event had not occurred, event would not have occurred. 1 This intuitively works well in a range of simple cases:1.If Socrates had not drunk the hemlock, he wouldn't have died.So, Socrates' drinking hemlock caused him to die. IfStriker hadn't taken the shot, Keeper wouldn't have dived.So, Striker's shot caused Keeper to dive. 3.If Michael Jackson hadn't died, Cristiano Ronaldo would still have signed for Real Madrid.So, Michael Jackson's death did not cause Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer. 2Consider, though, some of the ways that antecedent might be realised.For example, if Socrates had thrown himself from a cliff instead of drinking hemlock, if Striker had thrown a grenade instead 1 I am glossing some details here: the events must be distinct, and the counterfactual must be read in a special 'non-backtracking' way (see Lewis, 1979).My discussion in this paper is about this causal counterfactual -the conditional that simple counterfactual theories of causation require -it is not about counterfactual conditionals in general

Citation · Library science · Computer Science · Embodied and Extended Cognition · Epistemology, Ethics, and Metaphysics · Philosophy · Philosophy and Theoretical Science

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