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how does Lockes theory of primary and secondary qualities come about
he believed that the properties that we perceive can be split into 2 categories and he uses the distinction of these 2 properties a a further reason to reject indirect realism
what does Locke say about physical objects and give his example
they have the power to produce an idea in our minds e.g a snowball has the power produce ideas such as cold, white and round in our minds
according to locke what are primary qualities
properties that are ‘utterly inseperable’ from the object no matter what changes it goes through
what are these primary qualities according to Locke
size
shape
number
solidity
what does Locke mean by solidity
the ability an object has to take up space and exclude other objects from taking up that space
according to locke what are secondary qualities
qualities that an object has, that do nothing but produce a various sensation in us
give example of some secondary qualities
colour
sound
temperature
tastes
smells
can primary qualities also evoke sensation within us
yes
what do secondary qualities rely on that primary qualities do not
perception
must physical objects have secondary qualities
no, they can be colourless or odourless
what is the issue with Lockes initial definition primary qualities
he believed that when you break up an object into smaller parts, it will still have the same primary qualities as the original object but physics proves this not to be the case
what is Locke’s new definition of primary qualities
qualities which physics tells us physical objects have in and of themselves
what does locke believe about perceprtion and primary qualities
our perceptual experiences of primary qualities resemble the primary qualities of the physical object
why does he believe perceptual experiences of primary qualities resemble the primary qualities of the physical object
when we perceive a object we see its primary qualities but with secondary qualities our perceptions do not resemble the physical object
what does Locke believe cause secondary qualities
an objects atomic and molecular parts
so how does lock use the primary and secondary quality distinction to argue in favour indirect realism
the distinction highlights how the world as we experience it through our senses is different from how the world is in itself
because we experience the world through our secondary qualities that dont resemble physical objects
so the logical conclusion is that we dont perceive physical objects directly
