6

I have interest in ontology of numbers. I know that the two main schools of thought regarding the metaphysical status of numbers are mathematical Platonism and mathematical Nominalism. But I wonder - What other schools of thought address the question of the ontology of Numbers? And, where may I find concise but yet profound introduction to this subject?

3
  • 1
    check out husserl, just recently a book fell into my hand, that was mainly about the ontology of numbers. so, the difference between cardinal numbers, ordinal numbers. onfortunately I don't remember the title at the moment. Commented Mar 28, 2016 at 10:03
  • 2
    @AntonHarald, thank you for this direction; if you (or anyone else) get to remember the precise name of the relevant text of Husserl or of any other philosopher, it would be helpful. Commented Apr 1, 2016 at 7:28
  • 1
    I found the text now, however here it is in german: freidok.uni-freiburg.de/fedora/objects/freidok:6159/datastreams/… English wiki page about the book: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy_of_Arithmetic Commented Apr 1, 2016 at 12:49

1 Answer 1

2

Here is a very good SEP entry that covers a lot of ground regarding the subject in a clear and informative manner: Platonism in the Philosophy of Mathematics. (It has 'Platonism' in the title but gives you a good idea about opposing views as well).

2
  • 2
    Thank you for this reference. It does indeed cover some ground of the subject. Nonetheless, am still looking for a philosophical review or introduction which focuses directly on ontology of numbers. Thank you again. Commented Apr 1, 2016 at 8:37
  • 1
    @L.M.Student Try Frege's 'The Foundations of Arithmetic'
    – E...
    Commented Apr 1, 2016 at 8:59

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .