Reliance

I defend two theses, one negative and the other positive. The negative thesis is a rejection of any theory of reliance that reduces reliance either to a single belief or Michael Bratman’s acceptance in a practical context. 11 The positive thesis reflects the (but does not argue from) the facts (i) that the concept of reliance is, as I’ve pointed above, at play in many different arenas, and (ii) that this suggests that there is some equivocation or ambiguity in how we use this concept that is so central to so many of our moral and political theories. Thus, I argue that there are two kinds of reliance – an “internal” form and an “external” form.