Modal Logic Investigations in the Semantics of Counts-as

Abstract

The work investigates the logic underlying the representation of the non-regulative component of normative systems, the so-called counts-as. The analytic thesis we hold here is to view counts-as statements as statements which yield classifications and which hold only with respect to a context. These two aspects of the semantics of counts-as -the classificatory flavor, and the contextual character- are then investigated by means of modal logic techniques from a semantics-driven perspective, and a formalization of counts-as statements is thus proposed. The result is then compared in detail with previous work on the topic, and related with work which, despite developed in different areas of applied and philosophical logic, shares interesting technical and theoretical similarities with our proposal.