Direct realism

Question 1

What is Direct realism?

Answer 1

Direct realism argues that we perceive the external world and its properties immediately without mediation. And that the external world is mind-independent. It is appealing as it is intuitive, simple and robust.

Question 2

Issues including:

The argument from illusion

Answer 2

If direct realism is true, then everything we percieve is real and exists exactly as we perceive it. During an illusion it appears that something has a certain property, but there is no mind-independant object that has the certain property (straw in water example). This means that during an illusion we dont perceive reality directly, as what we perceive is mind-dependant.

Question 3

Response to illusion

Answer 3

We could say that during an illusion something may have the property of looking a certain way, but we can check this with our senses. Austin would reply to thus by saying that we dont need to invent something like sense data just because soemthing appears to be different to what it actually is.

Question 4

Issues including:

Perceptual variation

Answer 4

Perceptual variation is the difference between what we perceive and what is actually there. Russel says that things are interpreted differently based on the spectator (Table example). If the object i percieve seems to change but isnt actually changing, then i am not perceiving reality directly, so direct realism is false.

Question 5

Response to Perceptual variation

Answer 5

Perceptual variation does accur, but it could be argued that under optimal conditions we are able to perceive an object directly. The only question is, what are these optimal conditions?

Question 6

Issues including:

Hallucinations

Answer 6

Hallucinations only exist in the mind, and are sometimes indistinguishable from real perrception. Real perception must also be mind-dependant, so direct realism is fake.

Question 7

Response to hallucinations

Answer 7

A disjunctivist would say that even though perception can feel the same as a hallucination, doesnt mean that the cause for both is the same. The processes behind then are distinct even if they dont feel that way.

Question 8

Time lag

Answer 8

Russel says thag in the time that it takes for light to reach our eyes from the object we perceive, the object could have changed. This would mean that my perception differs from reality, so direct realism must be false

Question 9

Response to Time Lag

Answer 9

Direct realism claims that we perceive the world without mediation. Just because our perception isnt simultaneous, doesntean that some mediation has occured. Also, time lag simply explains how we perceive the external world, not what we perceive