KNOWLEDGE FROM PERCEPTION - EPISTEMOLOGY
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- Created on: 31-01-20 11:42
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- Epistemology - Knowledge from Perception (Part 2)
- Direct Realism
- The external world exists independently of the mind and we perceive the external world directly. When you perceive a tree you are looking at something that is really "out there" in the world.
- (What you see is what you get)
- Argument from ILLUSION
- When you place a stick in water and it appears bent and direct realist would say that it has the property of being bent.
- If direct realism is true, the external world would be exactly as we see/perceive it.
- However, in the case of illusion, there is an obvious difference between our perception and reality.
- Argument from HALLUCINATION
- If you were hallucinating for any reason, a direct realist would say that a hallucination does not come from the external world as there is no external object being perceived.
- Direct realism is perceiving the external world but if it doesn't happen in the external world, how can we perceive it.
- If you were hallucinating for any reason, a direct realist would say that a hallucination does not come from the external world as there is no external object being perceived.
- Argument from PERCEPTUAL VARIATION
- Differences can cause a problem in perceptual variation for direct realists.
- For example - Russell's Table
- When I stand in one place in a room, it's possible that i can see a white ***** of light reflecting on the table, yet to someone on the other side of the room, they may not see it.
- According to direct realism though, the light cannot both be there and not be there. This means, someone is wrong.
- When I stand in one place in a room, it's possible that i can see a white ***** of light reflecting on the table, yet to someone on the other side of the room, they may not see it.
- These differences that are seen, are to do with our perception of the table. Yet according to a direct realist, there should be no difference between reality and perception.
- For example - Russell's Table
- Differences can cause a problem in perceptual variation for direct realists.
- TIME LAG argment
- The sun is positioned about 148 million km away from the earth. Light travels 299,792,458m per second.
- Therefore, light takes 8 minutes to reach us here on earth. So, technically, you are looking at the sun 8 minutes into the past, not presently.
- Untitled
- Therefore, light takes 8 minutes to reach us here on earth. So, technically, you are looking at the sun 8 minutes into the past, not presently.
- The sun is positioned about 148 million km away from the earth. Light travels 299,792,458m per second.
- The external world exists independently of the mind and we perceive the external world directly. When you perceive a tree you are looking at something that is really "out there" in the world.
- Indirect Realism
- The external world exists independently of mind but we perceive the world indirectly, via sense data. Indirect realism says that the immediate object of perception is sense data. This sense data is caused by and represents the external world.
- Sense data
- Sense data can be described as the content from a perceptual experience.
- It is not a physical thing and it exists in the mind. However sense data is caused by mind independent physical objects.
- Because sense data is private and no one can experience the same things as you, it avoids the problems that direct realism faced, in relation to perceptual variation for example.
- Sense data can be described as the content from a perceptual experience.
- John Locke - Primary and Secondary qualities
- Primary qualities.
- Size
- Shape
- Motion
- Number
- Solidity
- These qualities are objective and will remain the same for everyone.
- Secondary qualities.
- Colour
- Sounds
- Tastes
- Smells
- Temperature
- These qualities are subjective and may be different to everyone.
- Berkeley disagrees with Locke inn the sense that primary qualities should not be considered mind-independent.
- For example, something that might look small to us, may look huge to a small animal or a smooth surface that appears to be jagged under a microscope.
- Berkeley's argument infers that everything we perceive is mind-dependent.
- Primary qualities.
- PROBLEM - Skepticism
- If we only perceive sense data and not the world itself, how can we know anything about the external world? We cannot get beyond the veil of perception (sense data) to access the world behind it. This leads to skepticism whether there is anything behind the wall at all.
- Russell says that there is no way to get around this skepticism but he argues the existence of the mind-independent external world is the best explanation for sense data.
- Locke's 1st response
- You are unable to avoid producing sense data in your mind. He states that whatever causes his perceptions must be something external to his mind as he is unable to control these perceptions.
- A skeptic would argue that the external world could be nothing like our perceived world and we would have no idea.
- You are unable to avoid producing sense data in your mind. He states that whatever causes his perceptions must be something external to his mind as he is unable to control these perceptions.
- Locke's 2nd response
- He also says that different senses confirm information to one another. For example you could read something at the same time you hear someone read it aloud.
- But the information you hear, may also be equally as misrepresented of the external world as the information you read.
- He also says that different senses confirm information to one another. For example you could read something at the same time you hear someone read it aloud.
- Locke's 1st response
- Russell says that there is no way to get around this skepticism but he argues the existence of the mind-independent external world is the best explanation for sense data.
- If we only perceive sense data and not the world itself, how can we know anything about the external world? We cannot get beyond the veil of perception (sense data) to access the world behind it. This leads to skepticism whether there is anything behind the wall at all.
- Sense data
- The external world exists independently of mind but we perceive the world indirectly, via sense data. Indirect realism says that the immediate object of perception is sense data. This sense data is caused by and represents the external world.
- Berkeley's Idealism
- There is no external world independent of minds. We perceive ideas directly.Essentially, the mind-independent objects of perception are mind-independent ideas.
- The claim that all things that exist are ideas.
- The master argument
- This is the dialogue between Hylas and Philonous, which is as follows.
- P: Try to think of an object that exists independently, without being perceived. H: I am thinking of a tree that is not being perceived by anyone. P: That is impossible! You are still thinking of a tree even though no one is looking at it right now. You can think of the idea but not of the actual tree.
- So, Berkeley's conclusion is that we cannot conceive of a mind-independent object because as soon as we think of it, it becomes mind-dependent.
- This is the dialogue between Hylas and Philonous, which is as follows.
- Is Berkeley skeptic?
- Berkeley cannto be considered skeptic because he refers to physical objects being bundles of ideas, rather than mind-independent objects
- By perceiving these ideas, we are perceiving reality directly.
- He believes that God is the thing that is causing these ideas for us. The cause of your perception must come from another mind and the only mind great enough to provide that is God.
- Berkeley cannto be considered skeptic because he refers to physical objects being bundles of ideas, rather than mind-independent objects
- PROBLEMS
- Solipsism
- This is the belief that only one mind exists. If I never perceive other minds, then all I perceive are ideas, so how do I believe that any other minds exist at all.
- Hallucination and Illusion
- As a direct theory of perception, idealism makes no link between appearance and reality.
- Berkeley's answer to why the pencil appears crooked is to say that the pencil is crooked. But since this is obviously false, the correct answer would to say that it looks crooked.
- In relation to hallucination, if "to be is to be perceived" is correct, then hallucinations may be just as real as ordinary perception.
- Also, why would God cause such perceptions?
- Solipsism
- There is no external world independent of minds. We perceive ideas directly.Essentially, the mind-independent objects of perception are mind-independent ideas.
- Direct Realism
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