Short description:

The study of perception and the role of the senses have recently risen to prominence in several areas of philosophy and are now a major area of study and research. However, the philosophical history of the senses remains a relatively neglected subject.

Long description:

The study of perception and the role of the senses have recently risen to prominence in philosophy and are now a major area of study and research. However, the philosophical history of the senses remains a relatively neglected subject. Moving beyond the current philosophical canon, this outstanding collection offers a wide-ranging and diverse philosophical exploration of the senses, from the classical period to the present day. Written by a team of international contributors, it is divided into six parts:

• Perception from Non-Western Perspectives


• Perception in the Ancient Period


• Perception in the Medieval Latin/Arabic Period


• Perception in the Early Modern Period


• Perception in the Post-Kantian Period


• Perception in the Contemporary Period.

The volume challenges conventional philosophical study of perception by covering a wide range of significant, as well as hitherto overlooked, topics, such as perceptual judgment, temporal and motion illusions, mirror and picture perception, animal senses and cross-modal integration. By investigating the history of the senses in thinkers such as Plotinus, Auriol, Berkeley and Cavendish; and considering the history of the senses in diverse philosophical traditions, including Chinese, Indian, Byzantine, Greek and Latin it brings a fresh approach to studying the history of philosophy itself.

Including a thorough introduction as well as introductions to each section by the editors, The Senses and the History of Philosophy is essential reading for students and researchers in the history of philosophy, perception, philosophy of mind, philosophical psychology, aesthetics and eastern and non-western philosophy. It will also be extremely useful for those in related disciplines such as psychology, religion, sociology, intellectual history and cognitive sciences.

Table of Contents:

General Introduction Brian Glenney and José Filipe Silva  Part 1: Problems of Perception from Non-Western Perspectives  Introduction to Part 1 Brian Glenney and José Filipe Silva  1. Chinese Theories of Perception and the Structural Approach to Comprehension Jana S. Rošker  2. Perception and its Disorders in Early China Susan Blake  3. Perception in Ny?ya Stephen Phillips  Part 2: Problems of Perception in the Ancient Period  Introduction to Part 2 Brian Glenney and José Filipe Silva  4. Puzzles in Post-Aristotelian Theories of Perception Katerina Ierodiakonou  5. Plotinus on Perception Anna Marmodoro  Part 3: Problems of Perception in the Medieval Latin/Arabic Period  Introduction to Part 3 Brian Glenney and José Filipe Silva  6. Perceptual Errors in Late Medieval Philosophy José Filipe Silva and Juhana Toivanen  7. What is in the Mirror? The Metaphysics of Mirror Images in Albert the Great and Peter Auriol Lukáš Lička  8. Peter Auriol and Adam Wodeham on Perception and Judgment H.T. Adriaenssen  Part 4: Problems of Perception in the Early Modern Period  Introduction to Part 4 Brian Glenney and José Filipe Silva  9. Anton Wilhelm Amo and the Problems of Perception Chris Meyns  10. Locke on Molyneux?s Question and Perceptual Concepts of Shape Janet Levin  11. Berkeley's Account of Extension and its Place in Vision Science Robert Schwartz  12. Berkeley and Reid on the Moon Illusion James Van Cleve  13. Margaret Cavendish on Perceptual Mistakes Deborah Boyle  Part 5: Problems of Perception in the Post-Kantian Period  Introduction to Part 5 Brian Glenney and José Filipe Silva  14. Husserl Takes Santonin: The Phenomenology of Perceptual Abnormality Michael Madary  15. Molyneux?s Question: Out of Touch with the World of the Blind Brian Glenney  Part 6: Problems of Perception in the Contemporary Period  Introduction to Part 6 Brian Glenney and José Filipe Silva  16. Visual Categorization Josefa Toribio  17. Perceiving Surfaces (and What They Depict) Gabriele Ferretti  18. It?s Not As Bad As You Think: Olfaction and Informational Richness Clare Batty  19. Molyneux, neuroplasticity, and technologies of sensory substitution Mark Paterson.  Index