Quantisation as a method of generation: The nature and prospects of theory changes through quantisation

Quantisation is a highly successful heuristic tool for constructing a quantum theory out of a classical theory - even though it is typically accepted that the classical is derivative on the quantum. With this paper, I aim to show that there are overlooked philosophical issues concerning theory generation, and theory change, that appear when considering the quantisation of classical theories. More concretely, I will reveal three major challenges to quantisation qua method of generation and discuss how they can be met. To begin with, given that quantisation goes the wrong way (at least on any orthodox account on the relationship between the classical and the quantum), it must involve ambiguities. A central task in understanding quantisation better as a method of generation is thus to investigate the scope of these ambiguities as well as possible remedies to them. This will be the topic of the first half of the paper. Ambiguities are, however, just one aspect - albeit a central one - of quantisation qua method of generation. How to think of quantisation as method of generation overall? In the second part of the paper, I offer a conceptualisation of quantisation as a form of prescription for translating between two theoretical frameworks - namely a classical and a quantum one. Making use of the characterisation of quantisation as prescriptional theory change, we make a first stab at assessing quantisation with respect to two other central issues of a generative strategy (over and above the ambiguity issue): that is how deep the structure it generates is (deep structure issue), and how it is justified (justification issue). Independently of my hope to offer the reader various specific insights on quantisation as a method of generation, this paper has already achieved its goal if it manages to reveal and map out the rich but unappreciated philosophical problems associated with quantisation qua method of generation.