The Moving Spotlight: An Essay on Time and OntologyRoss P. Cameron argues that the flow of time is a genuine feature of reality. He suggests that the best version of the A-Theory is a version of the Moving Spotlight view, according to which past and future beings are real, but there is nonetheless an objectively privileged present. Cameron argues that the Moving Spotlight theory should be viewed as having more in common with Presentism (the view that reality is limited to the present) than with the B-Theory (the view that time is just another dimension like space through which things are spread out). The Moving Spotlight view, on this picture, agrees with Presentism that everything is the way it is now, it simply thinks that non-present beings are amongst the things that are now some way. Cameron argues that the Moving Spotlight theory provides the best account of truthmakers for claims about what was or will be the case, and he defends the view against a number of objections, including McTaggart's argument that the A-Theory is inconsistent, and the charge that if the A-Theory is true but presentism false then we could not know that we are present. The Moving Spotlight defends an account of the open future--that what will happen is, as yet, undetermined--and argues that this is a better account than that available to the Growing Block theory. |
Contents
From ATheory to Presentism? Part 1 Epistemology | |
From ATheory to Presentism? Part 2 McTaggarts Paradox | |
On Giving an Ontological Account of Tense | |
The Moving Spotlight | |
The Open Future | |
Conclusion | |
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Common terms and phrases
6ft tall A-properties A-Theorist A-Theory accept actual affairs argue B-Theoretic believe blocker Bricker’s brute tensed facts brute truths Buffy Caesar crossed continuum hypothesis contradiction crossing the Rubicon deny dialetheism dinosaurs dyadic relation endurantism endurantist epistemic event exists experience false falsity feature of reality Fine’s Flatty future entities genuine change growing block growing block view happen hence hold hypotheses ideology incompatible inconsistent indeterminacy indeterminate instantiation intrinsic nature Lewis Lewis’s Lewisian located look lunar colonies McTaggart’s argument merely Merricks metaphysic monadic property moving spotlight theory non-presentist non-standard realism Obama obtain ordinary Past Record postbox being red prediction presentist Prime Matter primitive problem properties simpliciter property and age proposition puzzle reason relation representation sense Sider simply singleton-Socrates Socrates standard realist Supervenience temporal distributional property tense logic tensed truthmakers tensed truths theorist things are simpliciter thought truth-conditions truth-value truthmaker theory unsettled unsettledness utterance virtue worldly conditions