Locke primary and secondary qualities

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