Combining Texts

Ideas for 'The Sign of Four', 'From Metaphysics to Ethics' and 'Improvement of Understanding'

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4 ideas

18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 4. Folk Psychology
Folk psychology covers input, internal role, and output [Jackson]
     Full Idea: Folk psychology has a tripartite nature, with input clauses, internal role clauses, and output clauses.
     From: Frank Jackson (From Metaphysics to Ethics [1998], Ch.5)
     A reaction: Interesting, particularly that folk psychology refers to internal roles, or attempts to explain what is going on inside the 'black box'. The folk have collectively worked out a standard flow diagram for human thought.
18. Thought / C. Content / 1. Content
Egocentric or de se content seems to be irreducibly so [Jackson]
     Full Idea: I have been convinced by arguments (e.g. of Perry, Castaņeda and Lewis) that egocentric or de se content is irreducibly so.
     From: Frank Jackson (From Metaphysics to Ethics [1998], Ch.1)
     A reaction: This is associated with the use of indexicals (like 'I' and 'now') in language. Quine disagrees, and should not be written off. Any theory of content, concepts, meaning etc. must clearly taken account of such subjective language.
18. Thought / C. Content / 5. Twin Earth
Keep distinct the essential properties of water, and application conditions for the word 'water' [Jackson]
     Full Idea: My guess is that objectors to the deflationary account of the Twin Earth parable are confusing the essential properties of water with the question of what is essential for being water.
     From: Frank Jackson (From Metaphysics to Ethics [1998], Ch.3)
     A reaction: That is, we must distinguish between the actual ontology of water's properties and the conditions under which we (in our society) apply the word 'water'. Interesting. The latter issue, though, might push us back towards internalism...
18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / c. Classical concepts
Analysis is finding necessary and sufficient conditions by studying possible cases [Jackson]
     Full Idea: Conceptual analysis is sometimes understood as the business of finding necessary and sufficient conditions by the method of possible cases.
     From: Frank Jackson (From Metaphysics to Ethics [1998], Ch.3)
     A reaction: Some (e.g. Stich) reject this, but it seems to me undeniable that the procedure can be very illuminating, even if it is never totally successful. Jackson prefers to see analysis as the study of entailments between stories about the world.