Locke on Essence
Locke distinguishes the real essence from the nominal one. The real essence is some unknown insensible constitution of things on which their sensible qualities depend. In other words, it is a foundation from which all properties of things flow. For instance, the real essence of a gold ring is a constitution of its parts, on […]
Locke on Primary and Secondary Qualities
For Locke, idea is the immediate object of perception or whatever the mind perceives in itself. The power to produce any idea in our mind is a quality of the object endowed with that power. For example, a snowball has the power to produce in our minds the ideas of white, cold, and round. It […]
Locke on Solidity
According to John Locke, solidity is an idea that we receive by our touch. It is the most constant idea obtained from sensation. For instance, a moving or resting man always feels something under him that supports him. The floor resists to the entrance of man’s body into the place the floor possesses. When staying […]
Locke on Innate Knowledge
In an Essay Concerning Human Understanding, John Locke rejects innate principles in the mind. He argues that men may acquire all the knowledge they have barely by the use of their natural faculties and without the help of any innate ideas. Locke sets down the following arguments that undermine the notion of innate knowledge. Universal […]
Berkeley and Locke on Abstract Ideas
The main argument that Berkeley discloses in the introduction of a “Treatise” is that abstractionism is illusionary and inaccessible. In this context, Berkeley is criticizing Locke for his attempt to frame abstract notions that lead us to uncertainty and doubtfulness. Locke introduces abstraction as one of the operations of mind, along with compounding, comparing, memory […]
Universals and Abstract Entities
One of the ancient problems of metaphysics is about whether universals exist. Universal is what particular things have in common, namely characteristics or qualities. For instance, two pieces of chalk have in common a quality of color, namely “whiteness”. There are many philosophical positions regarding universals. The main contemporary ones are: Realism which postulates that […]
Mind-Body Problem
Philosophers has been argued for some centuries now whether minds really do act on the organisms, or whether organisms do act on the minds. Are mind and body two distinct things or they take part of the same realm? I. Dualistic Interactionism Dualistic interactionism is the position that there are mental phenomena distinct from, and […]
Russell’s account of knowledge
Bertrand Russell’s account of knowledge is one of the forms of Cartesian skepticism. Russell claims that we can never truly know the physical object itself without knowing all its relations and all its qualities. Knowing something would mean knowing all the facts of which a thing is a constituent. From which we would deduce that […]
Moore’s proof of an external world
Moore’s argument is a defense against radical skepticism of Descartes. Here is one hand. Here is another hand. Therefore, two human hands exist at this moment. Thus, external objects exist. Translating this reasoning by Descartes argument, we will get the following: If I know that I am sitting by the fire, then I know that […]