Abstract
This paper develops an update semantics for weak necessity modals (‘ought’, ‘should’).
I start with the basic approach to the weak/strong necessity modal distinction developed
in Silk 2012b: There is nothing specially “strong” about strong necessity modals;
they can be given their familiar semantics of necessity, predicating the necessity of
the prejacent of the evaluation world. The apparent “weakness” of weak necessity
modals results from their bracketing whether the necessity of the prejacent is veri-
fied in the actual world. I formalize these ideas within an Update with Centering
framework (Bittner 2011). The meaning of ‘Should φ’ is explained, fundamentally, in
terms of how its use updates attention toward (semantically unspecified) possibilities
in which φ is necessary. The semantics is also extended to deontic conditionals. The
proposed analyses capture various contrasting discourse properties of ‘should’ and
‘must’ — e.g. concerning context-sensitivity, entailingness, and force — and provide
an improved treatment of largely neglected data concerning information-sensitivity.
I close by briefly considering several alternative static and dynamic implementations
I start with the basic approach to the weak/strong necessity modal distinction developed
in Silk 2012b: There is nothing specially “strong” about strong necessity modals;
they can be given their familiar semantics of necessity, predicating the necessity of
the prejacent of the evaluation world. The apparent “weakness” of weak necessity
modals results from their bracketing whether the necessity of the prejacent is veri-
fied in the actual world. I formalize these ideas within an Update with Centering
framework (Bittner 2011). The meaning of ‘Should φ’ is explained, fundamentally, in
terms of how its use updates attention toward (semantically unspecified) possibilities
in which φ is necessary. The semantics is also extended to deontic conditionals. The
proposed analyses capture various contrasting discourse properties of ‘should’ and
‘must’ — e.g. concerning context-sensitivity, entailingness, and force — and provide
an improved treatment of largely neglected data concerning information-sensitivity.
I close by briefly considering several alternative static and dynamic implementations
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Deontic logic and normative systems (DEON 2016) |
| Subtitle of host publication | 13th International Conference, DEON 2016, Bayreuth, Germany |
| Editors | Olivier Roy, Malte Willer, Allard Temminga |
| Publisher | College Publications |
| Pages | 237-256 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-1848902152 |
| Publication status | Published - 15 Jun 2016 |
| Event | Deontic Logic and Normative Systems, DEON 2016: 13th International Conference - Germany, Bayreuth, Germany Duration: 18 Jul 2016 → 21 Jul 2016 |
Conference
| Conference | Deontic Logic and Normative Systems, DEON 2016 |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | Germany |
| City | Bayreuth |
| Period | 18/07/16 → 21/07/16 |