Unstructured Content: Introduction

In this introductory chapter, the editors begin by explaining the theoretical roles propositional contents are posited to play. They then introduce unstructured theories of propositions, according to which propositions are sets of truth-supporting circumstances, and discuss how well equipped such theories are to play those roles. Unstructured theories provide particularly direct explanations of the role of assertoric content in discourse and inferential relations between sentences, propositions, and propositional attitudes. However, they struggle with issues related to the individuation of propositional contents, since they hold that necessarily equivalent contents are identical. The editors discuss several possible responses to this objection. The chapter concludes by summarizing the contributions contained in this volume.