Clear all
Work #599 · Mid

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

Wilfrid Sellars
1956 · English
Analytic philosophy of mind · American Pittsburgh-school analytic philosophy

Sellars's 1956 foundational text — critique of the "Myth of the Given" and the space of reasons

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where works disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid is shown.

Attribute Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind (Mid)
Time · Extent Infinite
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Continuous
Time · Freedom Non-Deterministic
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Infinite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature Flat
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality Local
Matter · Extent Infinite
Matter · Ontological Status Substantival
Matter · Conservation Conserved
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality Local
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Partial
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Total
Observer · Physicality Embodied
Observer · Agency Both
Observer · Number Plural
Observer · Metaphysical Agency None
Observer · Moral Authority Reason
Observer · Theological Method
Energy · Extent Infinite
Energy · Ontological Status Substantival
Energy · Conservation Conserved
Energy · Dispersibility Irreversible
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Conserved
Information · Granularity Continuous

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each work's passages reveal about its stance on each of the six dimensions.

Time

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

The temporal life of justified belief.

Space

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

The conceptual space of reasons.

Matter

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

The material world described in the scientific image.

Observer

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

The inferentially-articulated knower in the space of reasons.

Energy

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

Energies of inferential justification.

Information

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

Critical-inferentialist framework.

Internal Tensions

Where each work's argument pulls against itself.

Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind

Sellars's critique of the Given is foundational for Pittsburgh-school analytic philosophy (McDowell, Brandom).