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Single Idea 15645
[filed under theme 9. Objects / D. Essence of Objects / 13. Nominal Essence
]
Full Idea
It is clear the nominal essences really are the properties of the things which have them: they are (a subset of) the observable properties of the things.
Gist of Idea
Nominal essence are the observable properties of things
Source
Antony Eagle (Locke on Essences and Kinds [2005], IV)
A Reaction
I think this is wrong. The surface characteristics are all that is available to us, so our classifications must be based on those, but it is on the ideas of them, not their intrinsic natures. That is empiricsm! What makes the properties 'essential'?
Related Idea
Idea 15644
In nominal essence, Locke confuses the set of properties with the abstracted idea of them [Eagle on Locke]
The
29 ideas
with the same theme
[essence as derived from experiences of objects]:
16627
|
If you remove the accidents from a horse and a lion, the intellect can't tell them apart
[Francis of Marchia]
|
17251
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The feature which picks out or names a thing is usually called its 'essence'
[Hobbes]
|
16031
|
Real essence explains observable qualities, but not what kind of thing it is
[Locke, by Jones,J-E]
|
15646
|
If essence is 'nominal', artificial gold (with its surface features) would qualify as 'gold'
[Locke, by Eagle]
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12306
|
'Nominal essence' is everything contained in the idea of a particular sort of thing
[Locke, by Copi]
|
15988
|
The observable qualities are never the real essence, since they depend on real essence
[Locke]
|
15644
|
In nominal essence, Locke confuses the set of properties with the abstracted idea of them
[Eagle on Locke]
|
16029
|
Locke's real and nominal essence refers back to Aristotle's real and nominal definitions
[Locke, by Jones,J-E]
|
12531
|
Nominal Essence is the abstract idea to which a name is attached
[Locke]
|
13433
|
Essences relate to sorting words; if you replace those with names, essences vanish
[Locke]
|
12533
|
Real essences are unknown, so only the nominal essence connects things to a species
[Locke]
|
12537
|
To be a nominal essence, a complex idea must exhibit unity
[Locke]
|
12557
|
Our ideas of substance are based on mental archetypes, but these come from the world
[Locke]
|
12561
|
For 'all gold is malleable' to be necessary, it must be part of gold's nominal essence
[Locke]
|
12812
|
Things have real essences, but we categorise them according to the ideas we receive
[Locke]
|
12975
|
We have a distinct idea of gold, to define it, but not a perfect idea, to understand it
[Leibniz]
|
12805
|
If two people apply a single term to different resemblances, they refer to two different things
[Leibniz]
|
12806
|
Locke needs many instances to show a natural kind, but why not a single instance?
[Leibniz, by Jolley]
|
12308
|
In modern science, nominal essence is intended to be real essence
[Copi]
|
5448
|
'Real essence' makes it what it is; 'nominal essence' makes us categorise it a certain way
[Ellis]
|
11835
|
The nominal essence is the idea behind a name used for sorting
[Wiggins]
|
16510
|
Nominal essences don't fix membership, ignore evolution, and aren't contextual
[Wiggins]
|
7384
|
Words are fixed by being attached to similarity clusters, without mention of 'essences'
[Dennett]
|
14226
|
We distinguish objects by their attributes, not by their essences
[Shalkowski]
|
14951
|
We treat the core of a pattern as an essence, in order to keep track of it
[Ladyman/Ross]
|
15645
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Nominal essence are the observable properties of things
[Eagle]
|
15642
|
If kinds depend only on what can be observed, many underlying essences might produce the same kind
[Eagle]
|
15643
|
Nominal essence mistakenly gives equal weight to all underlying properties that produce appearances
[Eagle]
|
17869
|
Kripke and Putnam offer an intermediary between real and nominal essences
[Almog]
|