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26. Natural Theory / B. Natural Kinds / 7. Critique of Kinds

[objections to dividing nature into 'kinds']

12 ideas
Natural kinds are not special; they are just well-defined resemblance collections [Abelard, by King,P]
If there are borderline cases between natural kinds, that makes them superficial [Ellis]
Generalised talk of 'natural kinds' is unfortunate, as they vary too much [Dummett]
Nominal essence may well be neither necessary nor sufficient for a natural kind [Kripke, by Bird]
Species do not have enough constancy to be natural kinds [Harré/Madden]
Natural kinds are decided entirely by the intentions of our classification [Dupré]
Cooks, unlike scientists, distinguish garlic from onions [Dupré]
Wales may count as fish [Dupré]
Borders between species are much less clear in vegetables than among animals [Dupré]
Even atoms of an element differ, in the energy levels of their electrons [Dupré]
Ecologists favour classifying by niche, even though that can clash with genealogy [Dupré]
Natural kinds are social institutions [Kusch]