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    Carmelics

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    Made withinDC&Austin
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    Home/Original/inverse
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    Inverse View

    It is not the case that Representational content is individuated by distal environmental relations, not internal causal organization, per Burge's anti-individualism.

    ?Set your confidence on the premises below to see your aggregate.

    Reasons For

    1 perspective
    Reason for
    ?
    • 1.We can coherently attribute mental states to subjects ignorant of their actual distal environment, suggesting internalism is viable.
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    • 2.Content determination by external relations makes mental causation explanatorily opaque—how do distal relations cause internal effects?
      ?

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    • 3.Internalism better preserves cognitive autonomy: what we think shouldn't depend on contingent facts beyond our access or control.
      ?

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    Reasons Against

    1 perspective
    Reason against
    ?
    • 1.Twin Earth cases show identical internal states can differ in content based on environmental history, supporting externalism.
      ?

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    • 2.Social institutions (e.g., arthritis vs. tharthritis) determine conceptual content, proving social externalism works.
      ?

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    • 3.Internal organization alone cannot explain how thoughts refer to specific distal objects rather than mere structural duplicates.
      ?

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