File spoon-archives/bhaskar.archive/bhaskar_2001/bhaskar.0106, message 10


Date: Fri, 15 Jun 2001 10:19:13 -0500
From: "Mark A. Foster" <mfoster-AT-jccc.net>
Subject: Re: BHA: real "essences" of "things"


Hi,

My understanding is that essence pertains to the real dimension, the laws or hidden structures which cannot be empirically observed. It has nothing to do with the medieval realism-nominalism debate. Bhaskar is distinguishing the real from the empirical, not from the nominal (particularism).

I see no reason why ontological nominalism would not be compatible with critical realism. The "essence" is not an attribute of entities (unlike with Plato) but a set of laws or structures which make outward appearances possible.

Mark A. Foster, Ph.D.
"Sacred cows make the best hamburger" 
-- Mark Twain and Abbie Hoffman


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