Grounding physicalism and ‘Moorean’ connections

Abstract

Grounding physicalism is the doctrine that mental properties are metaphysically grounded in underlying physical properties. The present paper develops a novel challenge to this view derived from two main claims: one of them concerning the natures of phenomenal properties, the other concerning the relation between grounding and essence. The central goal of the paper is to explain how grounding physicalists can meet this challenge by means of appealing to grounding laws, thereby making room for ‘Moorean’ connections between distinct types of property.