Answer to Question #184364 in Philosophy for external nature proof example

Question

external nature proof example

Answer 1

The problem of how we can know the existence and nature of the world external to our mind is one of the oldest and most difficult in philosophy. The discussion by John Locke (1632-1704) of knowledge of the external world have proved to be some of the most confusing and difficult passages of his entire body of philosophical work. Difficulties develop on several fronts.

First, in his main work in epistemology, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Locke seems to adopt a representative theory of perception. According to Locke, the only things we perceive (at least immediately) are ideas. Many of Locke’s readers have wondered, how can we know the world beyond our ideas if we only ever perceive such ideas?