An Empiricist Theory of Knowledge

1
An Empiricist Theory of Knowledge

• Lockes Theory of Knowledge
• Lecture 6

2
The Cartesian Theatre
3
No innate ideas Theory simplification

• Lockes reflection on knowing starts with the
  problem of theories
• Given two explanations the one that is most
  likely to be true is the simplest
• Is it possible to construct an explanation of
  knowledge without using the notion of innate
  ideas
• According to Locke, yes, is one starts with a
  simple concept (model) of the mind

4
The tabula rasa The blank slate

• Imagine the mind like a blank slate on which
  nothing is written (without any innate ideas)
• Let us suppose the mind to be, as we say, white
  paper, void of all characters, without any ideas
  How comes it to be furnished? To this I answer in
  one word, from EXPEREINCE. (John Locke, EHU)

The mind is like a blank slate informed only by
sense experience and acts of reflection
5
Evidence for Lockes model (EHU 216)

• Children show no evidence of innate ideas. They
  appear to learn their ideas
• Copy from adults
• Education
• Personal experience
• If a child were kept in a room with no color
  would have no idea of color
• So by degrees their minds are furnished with
  ideas

6
Sensation Reflection are the origin of all
ideas (and knowledge)

• Sensation
• Sense experiencing
• So sensation the act of sensing
• External (to consciousness) material things are
  the objects of sensation

• Reflection
• The minds experience of its own operations of
  thinking, believing, doubting, reasoning etc.
• The internal (to consciousness) correlate of
  sensing
• The minds operations are the objects of
  reflection

7
So . . . concluding argument

• All ideas originate with either
• Sensation (ideas of the sensible reality) or
  knowledge of external objects
• Notice external objects furnish ideas of sensible
  things
• Reflection (ideas of the minds operation) or
  knowledge of the minds operation (activities)
• Notice the mind furnishes the understanding with
  ideas about the minds own operations.
• There is a potential problem here. What is it?

8
Key distinctions

• Simple and complex ideas
• Simple ideas originate in any one sense that
  cannot be broken down into simpler entities (e.g.
  yellow)
• Complex ideas are combinations of simple ideas
  (apple spherical-red-sweet) created by the mind
• Primary and secondary qualities
• Primary quality are characteristics of external
  objects (extension, size, shape, location)
• Secondary qualities exist only in the mind yet
  caused by features of external objects (colors,
  sounds, tastes)
• Notice qualities inhere in things ideas in minds

9
Lockes theory of idea formation
EHU 277-21
10
All ideas from sensation or reflection
Passive impression
Sense data ?representation
Sensory experience (seeing, touching, tasting,
smelling)
Reflection (thinking, doubting, comparing, coming
to an opinion)
Active reflection
Ideas, concepts, explanations, etc.
11
sensation-reflection-operation-idea
sensation reflection simple idea operation
complex idea
Sense data ? blue ? color blue Sense
data ? stripe ? form stripe
Combination ? blue stripe
12
All ideas come from sensation or reflection
Experience
Passive mind
sensation
reflection
Simple ideas
Active mind
Complex ideas
13
Representationalism

• On this account the mind REPRESENTS reality (the
  external world)
• What we know are ideas NOT reality in itself
• Best analogy is a photographic process in which
  what is external to the camera imprints an
  image on the film.

14
What are we doing when we are knowing?

• Passively receiving sense impressions
• Assembled as representations of simple ideas
• Combined, compared, distinguished by active
  reflection into complex ideas
• Ideas correspond to the external world (or
  reality)

15
What do we know when we do that?

• IDEAS that represent the external world

Idea of a cactus in the sun

Knowledge of cactus in the sun
16
Lockes Epistemological Dualism
Our ideas correspond to objects in the world
Corresponds to
Mental object representation or idea, the
internal world
Physical object Reality in itself External world
17
The Egocentric Predicament

• If ideas correspond to the external world, how
  can we verify the correspondence?
• The is a version of the bridge problem
• There is no place outside the mind where one
  can verify the correspondence of the idea to the
  object represented
• So while Locke overcomes Cartesian solipsism, he
  has his own version of the egocentric
  predicament.

18
Lockes Contribution

• The senses play a role in knowing by providing
  data from an external world - the to be
  known.
• The external world (reality) imposes itself on
  consciousness. However, what is imposed
  (impressed on the mind) are ideas.
• As we have noted there is no means to verify the
  correspondence of idea and reality the idea
  represents.
• The mind actively relates the data together.
• So the mind is ACTIVE in acts of knowing.