Date Thesis Awarded

5-2016

Access Type

Honors Thesis -- Access Restricted On-Campus Only

Degree Name

Bachelors of Arts (BA)

Department

Philosophy

Advisor

Chad Vance

Committee Members

Jonah Goldwater

Christopher Ball

Abstract

When does composition occur? There are historical accounts that claim there are no composite objects, or that composite objects can consist of any given objects. These views fail to preserve our intuitions and warrant a different understanding of the term “object”. I present a psychological approach wherein observers ascribe objecthood to an arrangement in the form of a secondary quality. This subjective behavior can be traced back to the development of our perceptual capacities in our natural history.

Recommended Citation

Dantzler, Connor Drake, "A Psychological Approach to the Special Composition Question" (2016). Undergraduate Honors Theses. William & Mary. Paper 932.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/honorstheses/932