The future ain’t what it used to be: Strengthening the case for mutable futurism

Synthese 199 (3-4):10569-10585 (2021)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

This paper explores mutable futurism, the view according to which the future can literally change—that is, it can happen that a future time t changes from containing an event E to lacking it. Mutable futurism has received little attention so far, and the details and implications of the view are underexplored in the literature. For instance, it currently lacks a precise metaphysical model and a formal semantics. Although we do not endorse mutable futurism, our goal here is to strengthen the case for mutable futurism and help establish it as a worthy contender in the debate on the philosophy of time. To attain this goal, we try to make mutable futurism, along with its metaphysical and inferential commitments, as clear as possible, by providing it with a coherent metaphysical model and a plausible semantics, and we show that it can be backed by theoretical reasons.

Author Profiles

Giacomo Andreoletti
University of Salzburg
Giuseppe Spolaore
University of Padua

Analytics

Added to PP
2021-07-14

Downloads
321 (#49,731)

6 months
103 (#36,538)

Historical graph of downloads since first upload
This graph includes both downloads from PhilArchive and clicks on external links on PhilPapers.
How can I increase my downloads?