Stratified Counterpossible Logic

Chen Huang
(Institute of Logic and Cognition, Department of Philosophy, Sun Yat-sen University)
Xuefeng Wen
(Institute of Logic and Cognition, Department of Philosophy, Sun Yat-sen University)

This paper presents two logic systems, SCP and its extension SCP1, to distinguish between different types of impossibility. The semantics use a stratified structure that partitions worlds into logic-normal worlds (N) and anti-logic worlds (I). By defining a metaphysical accessibility relation within N, the systems separate metaphysical impossibility from logical contradiction. This allows for logical reasoning to be maintained even when dealing with metaphysical impossibilities. To address the challenge of vacuism, SCP1 implements a non-empty constraint on the selection function, ensuring that counterpossibles with impossible antecedents are not trivially true but depend on the connection between the antecedent and the consequent. We provide proofs for the soundness, completeness, and decidability of both systems. Finally, we indicate the possibility of applying this stratified approach to other modal domains, such as deontic or epistemic logic.

In Marta Bílková, Malvin Gattinger, Iris van der Giessen, Marianna Girlando and Yanjing Wang: Proceedings of the Sixteenth International Conference on Advances in Modal Logic (AiML 2026), Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 29-06-2026, Electronic Proceedings in Theoretical Computer Science 447, pp. 500–517.
Published: 29th June 2026.

ArXived at: https://dx.doi.org/10.4204/EPTCS.447.28 bibtex PDF
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