Antonio Freiles

Publications Works in Progress Talks Teaching

anantoni@syr.edu & CV

Antonio Freiles

I am a PhD Candidate in Philosophy at Syracuse University, where I have also completed an MA in Linguistics. Before completing my BA and MA in Philosophy at the University of Italian Switzerland, I grew up in Gaeta, Italy.

I mainly focus on metaphysics and the philosophy of language. Currently, I am mostly interested in which properties social identities have. I am wondering, for example, whether social identities can be defining of who one is, whether they can determine whether a speaker successfully performs a speech act, and whether they generate duties. Pursuing an answer to the last question led me to develop an interest in the nature of moral obligations more broadly.

At the start of my graduate studies, I spent most of my time figuring out whether truthmaker semantics could help inform the notions of ontological dependence and grounding.

Publications

The Truthmaking Account of Ontological Dependence. Forthcoming in Erkenntnis. (Pre-print)
Abstract

This paper explores a new account of ontological dependence based on exact truthmaker semantics, which I call the truthmaking account. The account holds that states verifying existential propositions and the parthood relation between states can characterize the relation of ontological dependence. After presenting the truthmaking account, I compare it with the modal and grounding accounts. In particular, I show that the truthmaking account is better than the modal one, and I explore its advantages and disadvantages with respect to the grounding account.

Papers

Under Review

A paper formulating a version of Material Plenitude based on a hyperintensional notion of essence.
A paper raising some general issues for accounts of grounding formulated with the tools of truthmaker semantics.
A paper investigating whether successful uptake of illocutionary acts varies depending on the social identity of the speaker.

In Progress

A paper defending the view that certain types of identities generate duties.
A paper contending that Material Plenitude's applications to social ontology are unsatisfactory.
A paper arguing that the standard model of language can account for the inferences that sociolinguistic variants trigger.

Recent Talks

"Material Plenitude for Fineans"
2026 UT-Austin Graduate Philosophy Conference, ATX, February 27 - 28, 2026.
Abstract

Material Plenitude is the view that, for every material object, there exists a myriad of objects coinciding with it that differ only in which properties they have essentially and which they have accidentally. Metaphysicians have formulated several versions of Material Plenitude, relying primarily on modal characterizations of essences and accidents. In this paper, I first motivate the need for a version of Material Plenitude that is compatible with a Finean understanding of essential and accidental properties, and then develop such a view, Finean Plenitude. Along the way, I highlight its most significant features.
"Does Who Speaks Matter?"
FAX5 (Poster), Lake Forest College, March 20 - 21, 2026.
Abstract • Handout

I present evidence against the view that certain sociolinguistic variants lead audiences to be more likely to successfully interpret an utterance when it is produced by a speaker belonging to privileged social groups. The experiments I designed and executed yield results that falsify this view. I conclude the paper by exploring the implications of the experimental findings for uptake failure and the broader theoretical debate about discursive injustice.

Teaching

PHI 107: Theories of Knowledge & Reality. Spring 2026. Primary Instructor: Syllabus.
PHI 192: Introduction to Moral Theory. Fall 2025. Primary Instructor: Syllabus & Evaluations.
PHI 191: The Meaning of Life. Online Asynchronous, Summer 2025. Primary Instructor: Syllabus.