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Single Idea 12535

[filed under theme 7. Existence / E. Categories / 2. Categorisation ]

Full Idea

Supposing that the real essences were discoverable, ..yet we could not reasonably think that the ranking of things under general names was regulated by those internal real constitutions, or any thing else but their obvious appearance.

Gist of Idea

If we discovered real essences, we would still categorise things by the external appearance

Source

John Locke (Essay Conc Human Understanding (2nd Ed) [1694], 3.06.25)

Book Ref

Locke,John: 'Essay Concerning Human Understanding', ed/tr. Nidditch,P.H. [OUP 1979], p.452

A Reaction

This makes Putnam's water and twater the same! I take it there is no rule here. The authority of science has gradually substitute H2O as the criterion for water, so real essence rules, but it doesn't have to.

The 17 ideas with the same theme [how the mind approaches putting things into categories]:

13775 We only succeed in cutting if we use appropriate tools, not if we approach it randomly [Plato]
16121 I revere anyone who can discern a single thing that encompasses many things [Plato]
13435 We can't categorise things by their real essences, because these are unknown [Locke]
12535 If we discovered real essences, we would still categorise things by the external appearance [Locke]
6160 Does Kant say the mind imposes categories, or that it restricts us to them? [Rowlands on Kant]
22649 Classification can only ever be for a particular purpose [James]
4048 Infant brains appear to have inbuilt ontological categories [Goldman]
8986 We should abandon classifying by pigeon-holes, and classify around paradigms [Sainsbury]
17376 We should aim for a classification which tells us as much as possible about the object [Dupré]
4913 Brain lesions can erase whole categories of perception, suggesting they are hard-wired [Carter,R]
15682 Even fairly simple animals make judgements based on categories [Gelman]
15691 Children accept real stable categories, with nonobvious potential that gives causal explanations [Gelman]
13131 The aim is that everything should belong in some ontological category or other [Westerhoff]
10494 Several words may label a category; one word can name several categories; some categories lack words [Ellen]
18573 For each category of objects (such as 'dog') an individual seems to have several concepts [Machery]
18602 A thing is classified if its features are likely to be generated by that category's causal laws [Machery]
18604 Are quick and slow categorisation the same process, or quite different? [Machery]