empiriscism

• Locke says that two things must be considered to showw innate knowledge

  1. that the knowledge must be universal
  2. That one is conscious of the knowledge
• Locke describes innatism as "thoughts imprinted within the soul"
• empiricism is the idea that all learning comes from only experience and observations. 
• Locke argues that knowledge cannot be universal if not everyone displays it; "children and idiots" do not show innate truths such as (in the case of the slave boy) geometry
• Innate truths cannot be conscious as from birth new information is discovered(it was not known before). Also, one cannot prove that all children have the understanding of concepts as they cannot prove it
• examples of empiriscists


  Hume, Locke
• Locke's response against innatism

  1. Knowledge cannot be universal if not everyone displays it. "Children and idiots" do not show innate truths(such as geometry in the example of the slave boy)
  2. Innate truths cannot be concious from birth as if new information is "discovered", it was not known before. One cannot prove that children possess the understanding of such knowledge as they cannot prove that they have this understanding.
• Locke uses the word idea to cover mental phenomena such as concepts or sensory experience
• All concepts are derived from experience
• Locke says that all ideas are a result of sensation or reflection. The senses let in the ideas which then allow the mind to formulate concepts
• Humes Copy Principle


  All concepts come from experience

  Concepts are faint copies of impressions

  Some concepts are indirectly from experience

  If a concept cannot be traced back to experience, then it cannot be a concept
• Hume argues that we possess inner impressions(reflection) that read to concepts regarding emotions
• Impressions can either be singular or complex
• Simple concepts are from singular sensory impressions
• Complex concepts can be from complex impressions or made up of multiple simple impressions(through combination or abstraction)
• Hume and Locke argue that no concept is more than the putting together of simple concepts
• All simple concepts derive from sense impressions
• simple concepts are indivisible
• "Tabula rasa" is an empiriscist argument that suggests when born your mind is a blank slate
• Empiricists reject the idea of innate knowledge as they say everything is known as a result of sensory experience
• Locke argues that to consider the concept of innatism, it must first be defined. To him, innate knowledge must be entirely universal and one must be conscious of having this knowledge
• If, as Decartes says, the concept of God is universal, then everyone would believe in the same monotheistic religion
• Hume suggests that every idea is a copy of a sensory impression rather than from innate wisdom
• all concepts, even abstract ones, are from experience as they are indirectly empirical as they are a combination or abstraction of similar concepts.
• Criticisms of the Trigger Argument

  • Babies learn language from the womb as they experience it pre-birth. With no experience, they cannot speak(feral children)
  • Stimulus and ability enables you to develop these skills
• Hume argues that one can deduce perfection from imperfeciton and therefore one can conceive a perfect being
• There is no reason for babies to understand concepts past womb experience(warmth and pain)
• If knowledge is unconscious, it must still be as a result of sensation or reflection. If neither remembered or new, innatism cannot be suported
• Criticisms of Descartes Trademark Argument

  • The causal adequacy principle is false - the outcome can be greater than the cause(sponge cake)
  • Lack of universal assent(Locke) - if God exists all would know God
  • God is a complex concept(Hume) - an amalgamation of other singular concepts
• Reasons to reject the existence of Innate knowledge

  • babies do not display anything that shows they have innate knowledge
  • The knowledge is not universal - children and idiots do not possess innate knowledge
  • the concepts of God would be universal and there is no singular religion
  • Leibniz suggests innate knowledge is unconscious - how can you prove what you know if you do not know that you know it?
• empiriscists believe that all synthetic knowledge is a posteriori
• What are the two sources of ideas(according to Locke)?

  sensation and reflection
• the tabula ras thesis claims that there can be nothing in your mind that does not originate from sensation
• the inner workings of the mind involve labelling, repitition and memory
• "a mild mannered man does not know anger" - Hume
• perception forms impressions
• impressions are immediate
• Locke says that the basic building blocks of thought are simple ideas
• simple concepts can be used to construct complex concepts
• complex concepts can be formed via abstraction