The argument asserts that ‘death’ (which we might taboo as ‘a change, the result of which is not existing’) is an incoherent concept. It’s not claiming that death is always in the future, it’s claiming that there is just no such thing as death.
I wasn’t referring to death not being in the present. Rather, the problem with the statement
in order for someone to be dead, they both have to exist (insofar as they have a property, namely ‘being dead’) and not exist (because they’re dead!).
is that it assumes that because the person doesn’t exist in the present, it isn’t meaningful to talk about that person existing at all.
Ahh, I see, that’s a very good point. So you would say that Socrates, despite being dead, nevertheless exists now as someone who is dead.
I suppose if we’ve got a block-time view of things anyway, existence wouldn’t have much of anything to do with presentness.
I like that answer.
The argument asserts that ‘death’ (which we might taboo as ‘a change, the result of which is not existing’) is an incoherent concept. It’s not claiming that death is always in the future, it’s claiming that there is just no such thing as death.
I wasn’t referring to death not being in the present. Rather, the problem with the statement
is that it assumes that because the person doesn’t exist in the present, it isn’t meaningful to talk about that person existing at all.
Ahh, I see, that’s a very good point. So you would say that Socrates, despite being dead, nevertheless exists now as someone who is dead.
I suppose if we’ve got a block-time view of things anyway, existence wouldn’t have much of anything to do with presentness.
I like that answer.