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Resilience and Sorites in the Normative Domain and Beyond

Andersson, Henrik LU and Werkmäster, Jakob LU (2026) In Theoria (Sweden)
Abstract

The sorites paradox is central to theories on vagueness, which aim to explain apparent contradictions. Some theories, however, imply sharp cut-offs where we would, intuitively, not expect them. This paper invokes the notion of normative resilience to address this issue. We argue that sharp cut-offs may result from a gradual decline in resilience, making the existence of precise boundaries less unexpected. The paper details the sorites paradox and influential theories on vagueness, introduces normative resilience, explores its application and discusses the potential generalisation of this approach across domains.

Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
in press
subject
keywords
resilience, sorites, vagueness
in
Theoria (Sweden)
publisher
John Wiley & Sons Inc.
external identifiers
  • scopus:105034832026
ISSN
0040-5825
DOI
10.1111/theo.70085
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
5144a7e7-f96b-41ea-a00e-269111b54923
date added to LUP
2026-06-08 16:22:05
date last changed
2026-06-08 16:22:56
@article{5144a7e7-f96b-41ea-a00e-269111b54923,
  abstract     = {{<p>The sorites paradox is central to theories on vagueness, which aim to explain apparent contradictions. Some theories, however, imply sharp cut-offs where we would, intuitively, not expect them. This paper invokes the notion of normative resilience to address this issue. We argue that sharp cut-offs may result from a gradual decline in resilience, making the existence of precise boundaries less unexpected. The paper details the sorites paradox and influential theories on vagueness, introduces normative resilience, explores its application and discusses the potential generalisation of this approach across domains.</p>}},
  author       = {{Andersson, Henrik and Werkmäster, Jakob}},
  issn         = {{0040-5825}},
  keywords     = {{resilience; sorites; vagueness}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{John Wiley & Sons Inc.}},
  series       = {{Theoria (Sweden)}},
  title        = {{Resilience and Sorites in the Normative Domain and Beyond}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/theo.70085}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/theo.70085}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}