What are finks in philosophy?

In philosophy what are finks?

In metaphysics of dispositions, a fink is a factor that would switch a disposition off (or on) right when its usual trigger occurs, so the thing fails (or succeeds) to manifest exactly because the fink intervenes.

• Standard case (fink removes a disposition): A live wire is connected to a safety device that instantly cuts the current the moment you touch it. The wire really is live (has the disposition to shock), but if touched it wouldn’t shock—because the fink removes the disposition at the trigger.
• Reverse fink (adds a disposition): A dead wire is rigged so that touching it flips on the current. It’s not live beforehand, yet if touched it would shock—because the fink adds the disposition at the trigger.

Why this matters: finks are used to challenge the simple conditional analysis of dispositions (roughly, “x is fragile iff if struck, x would break”). Finks show that such conditionals can fail even when the disposition is present (or succeed when it isn’t).

Related contrasts:

• Maskers/antidotes: prevent the manifestation without removing the disposition (e.g., fragile glass swaddled in shock-absorbing foam).
• Mimickers: produce the manifestation without the disposition (e.g., something that fizzes in water due to a hidden tablet, mimicking solubility).

Key sources discuss “finkish dispositions”: C. B. Martin (1994) introduced the idea; David Lewis (1997) gives the classic analysis and terminology.