Single Idea 6501

[catalogued under 12. Knowledge Sources / B. Perception / 4. Sense Data / d. Sense-data problems]

Full Idea

Sense-data are usually conceived as necessarily private to individual observers, so the final crisis for the empiricist conception of perception was Wittgenstein's famous polemic against such private objects.

Clarification

A 'polemic' is a sustained verbal attack

Gist of Idea

As sense-data are necessarily private, they are attacked by Wittgenstein's objections

Source

report of Ludwig Wittgenstein (Philosophical Investigations [1952]) by Howard Robinson - Perception IV.1

Book Reference

Robinson,Howard: 'Perception' [Routledge 2001], p.91


A Reaction

Personally I remain unconvinced by Wittgenstein's very elusive argument, but I think there are plenty of other reasons for doubting whether the idea of sense-data throws much light on our understanding of the processes of perception.