Lecture 5: Looking at Locke Flashcards
(20 cards)
What view about perception does Locke reject at the beginning of the lecture?
Locke rejects the ‘common sense’ causal theory of perception, which holds that the ideas in our minds are exact images or resemblances of objects in the external world.
Why is Locke’s rejection of a resemblance theory of perception surprising?
It seems surprising because Locke believes that knowledge ultimately comes from sense perception, yet he argues that ideas are not faithful representations of the objects that produce them.
What distinction does Locke insist we make in order to understand perception?
We must distinguish between the ideas we have in our minds and the external objects that cause those ideas. He warns against assuming that our ideas resemble their causes.
What does Locke say about the immediate objects of our perceptions?
The immediate objects of perception are not things in the world, but ideas in our minds. These ideas are produced by external objects but are not the same as those objects.
How does Locke compare ideas of sensation to words and their meanings?
He says that most ideas of sensation are no more like the external objects than the words we use are like the ideas they signify.
What example is used to explore the difference between seeing and feeling?
The lecture uses a candle: seeing its colour and shape is different from feeling pain when touching the flame. These are different types of experiences even though they are both caused by the object.
How does Locke argue for a difference between colour and pain?
Locke challenges the assumption that colour is ‘in the object’ while pain is ‘in the subject’. He notes that both are caused by external features, but neither need resemble the object.
What is Locke’s view of the relationship between ideas and the world?
Both colour and pain are ideas in us, caused by features in the world, but they do not resemble those features. Ideas are subjective representations triggered by objective causes.
What are primary qualities according to Locke?
Primary qualities are those that are inseparable from a body, such as solidity, extension, figure, motion, and number. These are considered to truly exist in objects.
What are secondary qualities according to Locke?
Secondary qualities are powers in objects to produce sensations like colour, sound, taste, and temperature. These do not resemble anything in the object itself.
Do both primary and secondary qualities exist in objects, according to Locke?
Yes, both exist in objects, but only the primary qualities resemble the ideas they produce in our minds.
What is Locke’s key distinction between primary and secondary qualities?
Primary qualities exist in objects and resemble the ideas they cause, while secondary qualities are the effects that primary qualities have on our senses, without resembling the object.
How does Locke use the example of cats to illustrate his point?
He asks whether your experience of ‘three cats’ reflects reality—yes, because number is a primary quality. But your experience of their ‘grey’ colour does not resemble anything intrinsic to the cats.
What is the empirical evidence Locke offers for his theory?
He points out that colours disappear in the dark while shapes and numbers persist. Also, temperature perception varies with the perceiver’s condition, while shape remains consistent.
What is the significance of the hot/cold water experiment?
It shows that two people can have conflicting sensory experiences of the same object, indicating that qualities like heat are subjective and dependent on the observer.
Why is shape considered more reliable than colour or temperature?
Because shape can be confirmed through multiple senses and is consistent regardless of changes in the perceiver, while secondary qualities are variable.
What conclusion does Locke reach about knowledge of the external world?
He believes that while we may not directly know the world, our ideas—especially those of primary qualities—give us structured and stable information that reflects the world’s reality.
Does Locke think we are trapped in our experiences?
Not entirely. He acknowledges that we only have access to ideas, but maintains that these can provide real knowledge, especially when grounded in experience and reason.
What worry remains after Locke’s distinction between primary and secondary qualities?
The concern is whether we can ever be sure that our experiences truly correspond to the world, or whether we are always confined within our own subjective ideas.
What philosopher is introduced next as taking a more radical position?
George Berkeley, who argues that there is no external world independent of our experience of it.
