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Full Idea
For abstractionists, concepts are essentially capacities for recognizing recurrent features of the world.
Gist of Idea
For abstractionists, concepts are capacities to recognise recurrent features of the world
Source
Peter Geach (Abstraction Reconsidered [1983], p.163)
Book Ref
'Knowledge and Mind', ed/tr. Ginet,C/Shoemaker,S [OUP 1983], p.163
A Reaction
Recognition certainly strikes me as central to thought (and revelatory of memory, since we continually recognise what we cannot actually recall). Geach dislikes this view, but I see it as crucial to an evolutionary view of thought.
10731 | For abstractionists, concepts are capacities to recognise recurrent features of the world [Geach] |
10732 | If concepts are just recognitional, then general judgements would be impossible [Geach] |
10733 | The abstractionist cannot explain 'some' and 'not' [Geach] |
10734 | Only a judgement can distinguish 'striking' from 'being struck' [Geach] |
10735 | Abstraction from objects won't reveal an operation's being performed 'so many times' [Geach] |