more from Michael Dummett

Single Idea 9880

[catalogued under 8. Modes of Existence / E. Nominalism / 1. Nominalism / a. Nominalism]

Full Idea

The nominalist superstition is based ultimately on the myth of the unmediated presentation of genuine concrete objects to the mind.

Gist of Idea

Nominalism assumes unmediated mental contact with objects

Source

Michael Dummett (Frege philosophy of mathematics [1991], Ch.18)

Book Reference

Dummett,Michael: 'Frege: philosophy of mathematics' [Duckworth 1991], p.231


A Reaction

Personally I am inclined to favour nominalism and a representative theory of perception, which acknowledges some 'mediation', but of a non-linguistic form. Any good theory here had better include animals, which seem to form concepts.