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Single Idea 7639
[filed under theme 12. Knowledge Sources / B. Perception / 4. Sense Data / d. Sense-data problems
]
Full Idea
The 'homunculus fallacy' attempts to explain what is involved in a subject's being related to objects in the external world by appealing to the existence of an inner situation which recapitulates the essential features of the original situation.
Gist of Idea
The Homunculus Fallacy explains a subject perceiving objects by repeating the problem internally
Source
Gareth Evans (Molyneux's Question [1978], p.397)
Book Ref
Evans,Gareth: 'Collected Papers' [OUP 1985], p.397
A Reaction
This is obviously right, but we aren't forced to settle for direct realism. Inner perception may be very different, or we may employ the idea of Dennett and Lycan, that the homunculi don't regress, they deteriorate steadily down into mechanisms.
The
23 ideas
from Gareth Evans
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9041
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The Causal Theory of Names is wrong, since the name 'Madagascar' actually changed denotation
[Evans]
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9038
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We must distinguish what the speaker denotes by a name, from what the name denotes
[Evans]
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5823
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The intended referent of a name needs to be the cause of the speaker's information about it
[Evans]
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9039
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If descriptions are sufficient for reference, then I must accept a false reference if the descriptions fit
[Evans]
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9040
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Charity should minimize inexplicable error, rather than maximising true beliefs
[Evans]
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9043
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We use expressions 'deferentially', to conform to the use of other people
[Evans]
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5824
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How can an expression be a name, if names can change their denotation?
[Evans]
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9042
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A private intention won't give a name a denotation; the practice needs it to be made public
[Evans]
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5825
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Speakers intend to refer to items that are the source of their information
[Evans]
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7639
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The Homunculus Fallacy explains a subject perceiving objects by repeating the problem internally
[Evans]
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14895
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'Superficial' contingency: false in some world; 'Deep' contingency: no obvious verification
[Evans, by Macià/Garcia-Carpentiro]
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11881
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Rigid designators can be meaningful even if empty
[Evans, by Mackie,P]
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16129
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Evans argues (falsely!) that a contradiction follows from treating objects as vague
[Evans, by Lowe]
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16459
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Is it coherent that reality is vague, identities can be vague, and objects can have fuzzy boundaries?
[Evans]
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16460
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Evans assumes there can be vague identity statements, and that his proof cannot be right
[Evans, by Lewis]
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16457
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There clearly are vague identity statements, and Evans's argument has a false conclusion
[Evans, by Lewis]
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14484
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If a=b is indeterminate, then a=/=b, and so there cannot be indeterminate identity
[Evans, by Thomasson]
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16224
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There can't be vague identity; a and b must differ, since a, unlike b, is only vaguely the same as b
[Evans, by PG]
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12580
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Experiences have no conceptual content
[Evans, by Greco]
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23794
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Some representational states, like perception, may be nonconceptual
[Evans, by Schulte]
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12575
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Concepts have a 'Generality Constraint', that we must know how predicates apply to them
[Evans, by Peacocke]
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7643
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We have far fewer colour concepts than we have discriminations of colour
[Evans]
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16366
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The Generality Constraint says if you can think a predicate you can apply it to anything
[Evans]
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