ABSTRACT
For the first two-thirds of the twentieth century, the topic of perception was at the forefront of discussion in the Anglo-American philosophical world. The topic was connected to two ongoing philosophical problems: the mind-body problem and an account of our knowledge of the external world. With respect to the former problem, questions concerning the causal and ontological relations between brain states and conscious experience were keenly debated. With respect to the latter problem, questions concerning the immediate objects of awareness in perception – whether they be physical objects or parts thereof, sense data, mental contents, or neutral entities distinct from ordinary physical objects and from minds or mental acts – were examined with great thoroughness for implications concerning human knowledge. Sometimes, the two sorts of con - siderations came together in proposals to alleviate the mind-body problem while also explaining how knowledge of objects and events is possible. In the first half of the century metaphysical and epistemological concerns both were strongly in play, whereas in the two decades after mid-century the discussion listed toward epistemology.
