Adýnaton. Four Dichotomies for a Philosophy of Impossibility

Abstract

The starting point of our paper is the distinction between a non-praxical impossibility from a praxical impossibility (i.e. an impossibility that does concern praxis, action). Our paper will focus on praxical impossibility. Within the domain of praxical impossibility, we will distinguish six different forms of praxical impossibility making use of three dichotomies: nomophoric vs. non-nomophoric, presence vs. absence, type vs. token. The eight forms of impossibility we introduce (non-praxical impossibility, praxical impossibility, nomophoric impossibility, non-nomophoric impossibility, presenceimpossibility, absence-impossibility, type-impossibility, token-impossibility) are eight ideal types for a philosophy of impossibility.

Keywords

• praxical impossibility
• normative impossibility
• constitutive rule