The status of possibility in Jan Łukasiewicz’s trivalent logic

Abstract

This paper will examine the motivations behind Jan Łukasiewicz’s rejection of the principle of bivalence. In particular, the relationship between the category of possibility and the logical value of judgements will be examined. This category is clearly linked to the view of the determinism/ indeterminism controversy presented by Łukasiewicz. The paper will close with remarks on the statute of possibility and an attempt to answer the question whether Łukasiewicz’s approach can be treated as something more than an intellectual exercise in constructing formal tools corresponding to certain conventions.