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Changing the Mission of Theories of Teleology 19

to identifying and using functions, and focusing on explanation, we can move to a richer
and more successful use of teleological functions. I use an analogy with epistemological
theories to shed some light on the shape of the teleology debate.
In what follows, I suggest some factors to consider in the further development of theo-
ries of teleofunctions. They amount to a set of DOs and DON’Ts, mainly four DON’Ts.
Perhaps they can be called “guidelines,” though they may be merely pieces of advice. I
can’t say I provide deductive proofs that one should avoid these things, or that they could
not possibly yield results. But I do provide arguments against them. First, I argue that
there is no principled difference between natural functions and functions of artifacts. There
are many cases of supposedly “natural” objects that are actually so altered by human action
as to be as much artifact as fully natural. So my fi rst recommendation in thinking about
function is 1) DON’T draw a hard line between natural functions and functions of artifacts.
Then I examine the role of context in teleofunctional explanations, and urge more attention
to it. Thus, 2) DON’T let teleofunctional theories neglect contexts. Then I move to the
artifacts side, and urge caution in appealing to intentions of the designers of objects as the

Distant/Ancient Past —

Etiological, Evolutionary Theories

(Millikan, Neander, Papineau,

Griffiths, Allen and Bekoff.)

Metaphysical

(Plato)

Religious —

Orthodox Theistic Accounts (Plantinga)

Aristotle

(according to some commentators, e.g., Ariew)

Emergentism

(Bedau, Cameron)

Non-Reductionist —

Conventionalism (Searle)

Present-Looking —

Causal Role Functional Analysis (Cummins)

Backward-Looking

Recent Past —

Goal-Contribution Theories

(Nagel, Woodfield, Nissen,

Boorse, Godfrey-Smith)

Forward-Looking —

Propensity (Bigelow and Pargetter)

Reductionist

Naturalistic

Quasi-

Naturalistic

Non-

Naturalistic

Figure 2.1
Categories of philosophical theories of teleological functions.