%A Markus Gabriel %T The Meaning of “Existence” and the Contingency of Sense %0 Journal Article %D 2014 %J Front. Philos. China %J Frontiers of Philosophy in China %@ 1673-3436 %R 10.3868/s030-003-014-0007-8 %P 109-129 %V 9 %N 1 %U {https://academic.hep.com.cn/fpc/EN/10.3868/s030-003-014-0007-8 %8 2014-03-05 %X

In this paper I argue first for a revisionary ontology, that is, for an understanding of “existence” as the property of a field not to be empty. In this context, I distinguish between “metaphysics” (the theory of totality or of fundamental reality) and “ontology” (the systematic investigation into the meaning of “existence”). In the second part, I provide a sketch for a corresponding revisionary theory of the modalities in light of the new ontology proposed.