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Revelation and Normativity in Visual Experience

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2020

Zoltán Jakab
Zoltán Jakab*
Affiliation:
Department of Cognitive Science Budapest University of Technology and Economics Budapest Hungary
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Extract

Suppose Figure 1 depicts Stimuli from an experiment on shape discrimination, where the subjects are asked to point out the best circle.

Now suppose that Figure 2 shows Stimuli from a color-discrimination experiment where the subjects’ task is to pick the purest green — green that is neither yellowish nor bluish — in other words, is unique green.

In both these tasks there are individual differences between different subjects. However, notice that in the shape-discrimination case there is exactly one correct response: the best circle is the fourth from the left. In the color case it is not obvious, to put it mildly, that there is exactly one correct response. One color-normal subject may find that the purest green is the third from the left, whereas another may choose the fifth from the left, and still another may pick the fourth. Who is right, and who is wrong? More importantly, why is there this difference between shape perception and color perception?

Type
Research Article
Information
Canadian Journal of Philosophy , Volume 36 , Issue 1 , March 2006 , pp. 25 - 56
Copyright
Copyright ©The Authors 2006

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