Ontological Grammar and the Moral Constitution of Bodies

Philosophics — Philosophical and Political Ramblings · Jun 12, 2026 · 21m

Language philosopher Bry Willis introduces the concept of ontological grammar to explain why certain social and moral disputes remain impossible to resolve. Using examples like Olivia Rodrigo’s fashion choices and the ethics of retributive justice, Willis argues that people often disagree because they are not actually looking at the same "object." Instead, our internal interpretive structures pre-sort information, determining whether an act appears as liberation or harm before any logical argument even begins. The text distinguishes this deep-seated constitutive divergence from simple…