Perception (Central Problems of Philosophy)

The philosophical issues raised by perception make it one of the central topics in the philosophical tradition. Debate about the nature of perceptual knowledge and the objects of perception comprises a thread that runs through the history of philosophy. In some historical periods the major issues have been predominantly epistemological and related to scepticism, but an adequate understanding of perception is important more widely, especially for metaphysics and the philosophy of mind. For this reason Barry Maund provides an account of the major issues in the philosophy of perception that highlights the importance of a good theory of perception in a range of philosophical fields, while also seeking to be sensitive to the historical dimension of the subject. The work presents chapters on forms of natural realism; theories of perceptual experience; representationalism; the argument from illusion; phenomenological senses; types of perceptual content; the representationalist/intentionalist thesis; and adverbialist accounts of perceptual experience. The ideas of, among others, Austin, Dretske, Heidegger, Millikan, Putnam and Robinson are considered and the reader is given a philosophical framework within which to consider the issues. Cover......Page 1 Copyright......Page 5 Contents......Page 8 Preface......Page 10 1. The philosophy of perception......Page 12 2. A theory of natural realism......Page 36 3. Theories of perceptual experiences......Page 62 4. Representationalism: representations as natural signs......Page 78 5. Natural realism: Putnam, Austin and Heidegger......Page 100 6. Perception: the argument from illusion......Page 122 7. The phenomenal and phenomenological senses of "looks"......Page 142 8. Types of perceptual content......Page 160 9. The representationalist–intentionalist thesis......Page 176 10. Adverbialist accounts of perceptual experience......Page 204 Conclusion......Page 220 Notes......Page 222 References......Page 230 Index......Page 234 An account of major issues in the philosophy of perception, highlighting its importance in a range of philosophical fields. Topics covered include: natural realism; theories of perceptual experience; representationalism; the argument from illusion; phenomenological senses; and more.