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In this chapter I introduce the notion of arbitrary object and give an initial discussion of it. I take puzzles surrounding the notion of arbitrary object as key questions that should motivate and inspire the construction of a metaphysical theory of arbitrary objects. The theory that I propose bears resemblance to Kit Fine's theory of arbitrary objects. Moreover, key elements of the theory of arbitrary objects can already be found in the theory of variables in Russell's \emph{Principles of Mathematics}.
Building on the seminal work of Kit Fine in the 1980s, Leon Horsten here develops a new theory of arbitrary entities. He connects this theory to issues and debates in metaphysics, logic, and contemporary philosophy of mathematics, investigating the relation between specific and arbitrary objects and between specific and arbitrary systems of objects. His book shows how this innovative theory is highly applicable to problems in the philosophy of arithmetic, and explores in particular how arbitrary objects can engage with the nineteenth-century concept of variable mathematical quantities, how they are relevant for debates around mathematical structuralism, and how they can help our understanding of the concept of random variables in statistics. This fully worked through theory will open up new avenues within philosophy of mathematics, bringing in the work of other philosophers such as Saul Kripke, and providing new insights into the development of the foundations of mathematics from the eighteenth century to the present day.
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