Starting in the Middle
Starting in the Middle
This chapter sets the stage by sketching, in general terms, the externalist perspective that guides the argument of the book. Four examples are given from the recent philosophical literature of an externalist shift: Hume's skeptical solution to his skeptical doubts about induction; Wilfrid Sellars's discussion of sense data, perception, and visual experience; Saul Kripke's criticisms of the description theory of reference; and David Lewis's discussion of the Putnam paradox. The aim in giving these familiar examples is to bring out some common patterns of argument. The chapter concludes with a discussion of Bernard Williams's notion of an absolute conception of reality.
Keywords: Hume, Kripke, Sellars, David Lewis, Putnam paradox, externalism, absolute conception
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