Philosophy of Time: A Contemporary Introduction

331 Pages·2021·29.06 MB·english

by  Sean Enda Power

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Philosophy of Time

As a growing area of research, the philosophy of time is increasingly relevant
to different areas of philosophy and even other disciplines. This book describes
and evaluates the most important debates in philosophy of time, under several
subject areas: metaphysics, epistemology, physics, philosophy of language, phil-
osophy of mind, cognitive science, rationality, and art.
Questions this book investigates include the following. Can we know what
time really is? Is time possible, especially given modern physics? Must there be
time because we cannot think without it? What do we experience of time? How
might philosophy of time be relevant to understanding the mind– body rela-
tionship or evidence in cognitive science? Can the philosophy of time help us
understand biases toward the future and the fear of death? How is time relevant
to art— and is art relevant to philosophical debates about time? Finally, what
exactly could time travel be? And could time travel satisfy emotions such as nos-
talgia and regret?
Through asking such questions, and showing how they might be best answered,
the book demonstrates the importance philosophy of time has in contemporary
thought. Each of the book’s ten chapters begins with a helpful introduction and
ends with study questions and an annotated list of further reading. This and a
comprehensive bibliography at the end of the book prepare the reader to go fur-
ther in their study of the philosophy of time.
Sean Enda Power is Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Philosophy
at University College Cork, Ireland. He has authored, among other work, The
Philosophy of Time and Perceptual Experience (Routledge, 2018) and has co-e dited
The Illusions of Time (2019). He is a previous Irish Research Council Postdoctoral
Fellow and a previous Visiting Fellow at the Centre for Time, University of Sydney.
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Recently Published Volumes:
Philosophy of Western Music
Andrew Kania
Phenomenology
Walter Hopp
Philosophical Logic
John MacFarlane
Philosophy of Action
Sarah K. Paul
Animal Ethics
Bob Fischer
Philosophy of Time
Sean Enda Power
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iii
Philosophy of Time

A Contemporary Introduction
Sean Enda Power
iv
First published 2021
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A catalog record for this title has been requested
ISBN: 978- 1- 138- 24048- 3 (hbk)
ISBN: 978- 1- 138- 24049- 0 (pbk)
ISBN: 978- 1- 315- 28361- 6 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Newgen Publishing UK
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Contents

List of Figures xiv
Preface xv
About This Book xvi
Acknowledgements xix
1 Epistemology of Time 1
Overview 1
Introduction 2
Theoretical Time Is Not Folk Time 3
A World Without Time Is Not a World We Understand 4
Folk Time 5
Objects and Events 7
Temporal Properties and Relations 8
Independent Time 9
Substantivalism 9
Relationalism 10
Objection: A Frozen World Is Possible 11
Objection: We Can Have Indirect Knowledge of Substantival Time 12
Frozen Worlds 12
Objection 1: We Do Not Know There Is a Global Freeze (Other
Explanations Available) 15
Response: Inference to the Simplest Explanation 15
Objection 2: Time in an Unchanging World Still Needs the World 15
Objection 3: Shoemaker-S tyle Arguments Do Not Suit Lived Experience 16
Scepticism about Time 17
Kant’s Antinomies 17
Thesis: Time Has a Beginning 18
Antithesis: Time Has No Beginning 18
Elapsing Time and Temporal Passage 19
Idealism or Scepticism? 19
Sextus Empiricus 20
Scepticism about Change 21
Objection: This Argument Is Against the Reality of Change 21
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vi Contents
Against Time’s Divisibility or Indivisibility 22
The Argument Against Time as Past, Present, and Future 23
Objection 1: We Cannot Suspend Beliefs about Time 24
Objection 2: Scepticism Depends on One’s Metaphysics of Time 24
Knowledge of Time through Perception 25
The Causal Truth-Maker Principle 25
Temporal Order Cannot Cause Belief 26
Study Questions 27
Suggested Readings 28
2 Metaphysics of Time I: Time and Change 29
Overview 29
Introduction 30
McTaggart’s Paradox 31
The Two Main Concepts of Events in Time 31
A- Series 32
B- Series 32
McTaggart’s Argument 33
Solution 1: A- Series Positions Are Determined by B- Series Positions 36
Indexicals 36
Objection: The B- Series Is Not Enough for Change 38
Objection 1: The B- Series Does Not Provide Real
A- Series Positions 38
Objection 2: The B- Series Does Not Capture Real Change 38
Motion and A- Series Change 39
Indexical A- Series Change 40
Objection: This Is Not Real Change 40
Analogy between a Fundamental A- Series and Absolute Space 41
Tense Theory 42
Temporal Passage 42
The Unique and Real Present 43
Real Present and Temporal Passage 43
Real Present and the Real A- Series 44
Time Defined by Events and a Static A- Series 44
Kinds of Tense Theory 45
Presentism 45
Presentism Is Intuitive 46
Presentism Solves McTaggart’s Paradox 47
Objection 1: No Real A- Series 48
Objection 2: Presentism Lacks Truth- Makers for Truths
about the Past 48
Objection 3: Presentism and Physics 50
Eternalism 50
The “Moving Spotlight” 50
Objection: Events Must Change 51
The Growing Block Theory 51
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Contents vii
Tenseless Theory 52
Change, Static and Dynamic 53
R- Theory 55
Study Questions 56
Suggested Readings 56
3 Metaphysics of Time II: Change and Persistence in Objects 58
Overview 58
Introduction 59
Concrete Particulars 59
An Object Exists in Space 61
Spatial Parts 62
An Object Exists in Time 62
An Object Persists 63
Endurantism: An Object is at Each Time it Persists 63
Being Wholly Present 64
Objection: Endurantism Has No Spatial Analogue 65
The Persistence of Objects through Change 65
Hinchliff’s Four Conditions of Change 66
Objection: There Is No Analogy for Specific Properties 67
Leibniz’ Law 68
Numerical Identity 69
Relations-t o- Times: Temporal Location Is Not a Property 70
Adverbialism 71
The Problem of Temporary Intrinsics 72
Intrinsic Properties 73
Temporary Intrinsic Properties 74
Endurantism 74
Relations-t o- Times and Adverbialism 75
Temporal Parts: A Different Object is at Each Time an Object Persists 76
Objection: Objects Are Continuants 77
Response 1: An Object Can Have Infinite Parts 77
Response 2: This Objection Requires Continuous Time 78
Perdurance: The Ordinary Object Is the Persisting Object 78
Exdurantism (Stage Theory): The Ordinary Object Is the Object
at Each Time 79
Intuitions about Persistence 81
Study Questions 82
Suggested Readings 83
4 Philosophy of Physics and Time 84
Overview 84
Introduction 85
Physics Without Time 86
Substantivalism and Early Physics 87
Relative Simultaneity 88
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viii Contents
Relative Frames 88
Relative Is Neither Private Nor Subjective 90
Relative Time 91
The Constant Speed of Light 91
Inertial Frames 94
Possible Absolute Simultaneity and Temporal Order 94
Minkowski Space- Time 95
Relative Temporal Order 96
STR and Relative Temporal Order 98
Objection: There Is Absolute Temporal Order in STR 99
Response: Not All Earlier Events Are Causally Related to Later Events 99
Causal Order and Perceived Temporal Order 99
Causal Order and the Intuition of Temporal Order 101
Backwards Causation 102
Entropy 103
Bardon’s Entropy Account of Perception 104
Objections to Relative Time 107
Bergson’s Objections to Relative Time 107
Objection 1: Real Time Is Continuous 107
Objection 2: Relative Time Is Merely Imagined Time 108
Objection 3: Experienced Time Requires Absolute Time 109
Tense Theory Objections 110
Tense Theory and Temporal Order 111
Tense Theory and Relative Simultaneity 112
Presentism 112
Privileged Frames of Reference 113
The Ether 113
Objection: We Cannot Detect the Privileged Frame 114
Tenseless Theory 116
Study Questions 117
Suggested Readings 118
5 Philosophy of Language and Time 119
Overview 119
Time and the Linguistic Turn 120
Metaphors of Temporal Passage 122
Objection: Metaphors of Passage Have Meaning 123
Merely Apparent Metaphysical Meaning 124
Modifiers 125
Temporal Properties of Linguistic Expressions 126
Tokens 127
Propositions 128
Changing Propositional Truth- Values 129
Truth- Makers and Facts 130
Truth- Makers for Propositional Variation in Truth- Value 130
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Contents ix
Objection: Propositions Are Abstract and Not in Time 132
Truth- Makers and Tokens 132
Implicit Context 133
Token- Reflexive Truth- Conditions 133
Linguistic Responses to McTaggart’s Paradox 135
Irreducible Tense 137
Tense Language and Tokens 137
Objection 1: Propositions Cannot Change Truth- Value in Tense
Theory 138
Response: Tense is a Modifier 139
Objection 2: Tense Tokens Are Not Merely Linguistic Entities 140
Response: The Tokens Only Undermine Mere Linguistic Solutions 140
Tenseless Facts 140
Objection: Some Tensed Propositions Cannot Have Tokens 142
Response: Date- Reflexive Theory 143
Tense Logic 144
Logical Operators and Truth- Value 144
Tense Logic and the Metaphysics of Time 145
Objection 1: We Talk as if Tense are Properties, Locations, or Facts 145
Objection 2: Tense Logic Assumes Presentism 146
Objection 3: Tense Operators Do Not Need an Unreal Past and Future 146
Study Questions 148
Suggested Readings 148
6 Philosophy of Mind and Time 150
Overview 150
Introduction 151
Time is Only in the Mind: St Augustine’s Argument 152
Objection 1: Time Is Unreal Not Mind- Dependent 153
Objection 2: The Past and Future Are Real 154
Objection 2: The Present Can Have Duration 154
Tense Theory 154
Tenseless Theory 155
Temporal Experience 157
The Appearance of Time in the World 158
Time We Do Not Experience 158
Time We Do Experience 159
Objection: Time- Lag 160
Response: Apparent Time 161
Apparent Reality 161
Phenomenological Presentism 161
Appearance of Actual Times 162
Duration 163
Temporal Order 163
Experiences of Change 164