− | '''Hypostatic abstraction''', also known as '''hypostasis''' or '''subjectal abstraction''', is a formal operation that takes an element of information, such as might be expressed in a proposition of the form ''X is Y'', and conceives its information to consist in the relation between a subject and another subject, such as expressed in a proposition of the form ''X has Y-ness''. The existence of the latter subject, here ''Y-ness'', consists solely in the truth of those propositions that have the corresponding concrete term, here ''Y'', as the predicate. The object of discussion or thought thus introduced may also be called a '''[[hypostatic object]]'''. | + | '''Hypostatic abstraction''', also known as '''hypostasis''' or '''subjectal abstraction''', is a formal operation that takes an element of information, such as might be expressed in a proposition of the form ''X is Y'', and conceives its information to consist in the relation between a subject and another subject, such as expressed in a proposition of the form ''X has Y-ness''. The existence of the latter subject, here ''Y-ness'', consists solely in the truth of those propositions that have the corresponding concrete term, here ''Y'', as the predicate. The object of discussion or thought thus introduced may also be called a ''[[hypostatic object]]''. |
| The above definition is adapted from the one given by [[Charles Sanders Peirce]] (CP 4.235, "The Simplest Mathematics" (1902), in ''Collected Papers'', CP 4.227–323). | | The above definition is adapted from the one given by [[Charles Sanders Peirce]] (CP 4.235, "The Simplest Mathematics" (1902), in ''Collected Papers'', CP 4.227–323). |