The problem of extrinsic grounding

Can a fact constituted by an object A be grounded exclusively in facts which do not entail A as a constituent? I call this the problem of extrinsic grounding. Prima facie, it seems that there are such cases. In this paper I provide a negative answer to this question. Firstly, I show why this is an important problem. Secondly, I will argue that all apparent cases of extrinsic grounding are merely apparent. My solution is based on the notion of the ‘impure object’. In my view, to each apparent case of extrinsic grounding there is an underlying perspicuous intrinsic grounding link, in which the object of the grounded fact is constituted by an impure object. In the last section, I argue that my solution also works in the ‘hard case’ of grounding the existence of ordinary objects.