A book of great value to students of Aristotle's theory of perception-especially students who are also interested in contemporary work on perception. Philosophers of perception who do not have a strong antecedent interest in Aristotle will find material of value as well.

Gregory Salmieri, Journal of the History of Philosophy

...thought-provoking as well as refreshing...

Katerina Ierodiakonou, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews Online

Mark Eli Kalderon presents an original study in the philosophy of perception written in the medium of historiography. He considers the phenomenology and metaphysics of sensory presentation through the examination of an ancient aporia. Specifically, he argues that a puzzle about perception at a distance is behind Empedocles' theory of vision. Empedocles conceives of perception as a mode of material assimilation, but this raises a puzzle about color vision, since color vision seems to present colors that inhere in distant objects. But if the colors inhere in distant objects how can they be taken in by the organ of sight and so be palpable to sense? Aristotle purports to resolve this puzzle in his definition of perception as the assimilation of sensible form without the matter of the perceived particular. Aristotle explicitly criticizes Empedocles, though he is keen to retain the idea that perception is a mode of assimilation, if not a material mode. Aristotle's notorious definition has long puzzled commentators. Kalderon shows how, read in light of Empedoclean puzzlement about the sensory presentation of remote objects, Aristotle's definition of perception can be better understood. Moreover, when so read, the resulting conception of perception is both attractive and defensible.
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Mark Eli Kalderon presents an original study of perception, taking as its starting point a puzzle in Empedocles' theory of vision: if perception is a mode of material assimilation, how can we perceive colors at a distance? Kalderon argues that the theory of perception offered by Aristotle in answer to the puzzle is both attractive and defensible.
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Preface ; Acknowledgements ; 1. Empedocles ; 2. Perception at a Distance ; 3. Transparency ; 4. Color ; 5. Light and Dark ; 6. The Generation of the Hues ; 7. The Eye ; 8. Two Transitions to Actuality ; 9. Form Without Matter ; Bibliography ; Index
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A novel approach to philosophy of perception Discusses neglected topics in Aristotle's psychology Sheds new light on a key theme in ancient philosophy
Mark Eli Kalderon is a Professor of Philosophy at University College London. He received his PhD from Princeton in 1995. His most recent work concerns color and the nature of perception. He is the author of Moral Fictionalism (OUP, 2005), and editor of Fictionalism in Metaphysics (OUP, 2005).
Les mer
A novel approach to philosophy of perception Discusses neglected topics in Aristotle's psychology Sheds new light on a key theme in ancient philosophy

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780198717904
Publisert
2015
Utgiver
Oxford University Press
Vekt
512 gr
Høyde
241 mm
Bredde
168 mm
Dybde
18 mm
Aldersnivå
UP, 05
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
234

Forfatter

Biografisk notat

Mark Eli Kalderon is a Professor of Philosophy at University College London. He received his PhD from Princeton in 1995. His most recent work concerns color and the nature of perception. He is the author of Moral Fictionalism (OUP, 2005), and editor of Fictionalism in Metaphysics (OUP, 2005).