Assignment Problem: Please answer these questions in your own words and answer 6-7 sentences for every question.
Question 1: What does Quine mean by "no entity without identity"? How does he use this principle to criticize talk of possible objects?
Question 2: According to Carnap, our use of general terms, like "red", commits us to the existence of properties, but it doesn't commit us to Platonism. Briefly explain Carnap's position on this point.
Question 3: How does actualism analyze the truth conditions of modal claims? Give at least one clear example that illustrates how actualism differs from modal realism in its analysis of modal claims.
Question 4: Briefly explain the attempt to define the subject matter of metaphysics as the investigation into ultimate explanations. Give at least on topic in the course that might seem to fit this definition. Why might this definition nonetheless seem to fall short?
Question 5: According to Sider, the ordinary (dynamic) theory of time should be rejected, because of the difficulty it has in explaining how time moves. Clearly explain this difficulty. How does four-dimensionalism avoid it?
Question 6: Give Amie Thomasson's main theses about fictional characters. On this view, what's the problem with saying that fictional characters just exist within literary works?