Week 12: McTaggart, 'The Unreality of Time'

 

DQ1. McTaggart describes time in terms of the A, B and C Series.

  1. How are they defined? Use McTaggart's text to support your definitions.
  2. Where in the article does McTaggart discuss how we 'observe' and 'perceive' time? What does he conclude from these discussions?

 

DQ2. Here is a reconstruction of McTaggart's argument for the unreality of time.

McTaggart's Rejection of the reality of time (reconstructed from pgs.469-470)

  1. (Premise): If time is real, then there is real change (temporal passage).
  2. (Premise): If there is real change (temporal passage), then it must be A Series change.
  3. (Premise): A Series change is incoherent, leading either to circularity or to an infinite regress.
  4. (Conclusion): Therefore, time is not real.
  1. Compare this to what McTaggart says in the text. Is it an accurate reconstruction? Explain.
  2. What are the consequences of accepting McTaggart's three premises? Which (if any) would you reject?

 

(Optional) DQ3. Heather Dyke (2002) argues that objects, not events, are what change during the real passage of time. How is this a response to McTaggart? Do you agree?