Two methods of induction
Enumeration: taking a whole lot of instances of the same kind. A B C D swans are all
white.
Elimination: sets out to eliminate other reasons for something being white or apart
from being a swan (take swans from different countries).
Ex. Observe people drinking at a party – one takes rye and soda, scotch and soda,
brandy and soda – what causes drunkenness. By elimination: soda gets them drunk.
Margin of error.
Universals: contrasting Russell vs. Plato
Plato: any particulars that share certain quality in common (trangularity)
participated/shared in a common universal.
Russell: ex. “I like this”. Like is universal – everyone is able to like something, it’s
shared. “I” demonstrative. It will denote who is using the word. Denoting yourself,
himself, herself. “This” that who is denoting the sentence is speaking about.
X likes Y – R(x y) – two term relation – identity of relation (x=y)
X gives Y to Z
G (x y z)
Concentrated on qualities as examples of universals, relations are just as important.
A relation is a prime example of a true universal. You will always find a sentence,
statement or proposition with at least ONE universal.
David Hume avoided abstract ideas – Russell’s universals were abstract ideas.
Impressions: like Russell’s sense data.
How do we know something’s white?
Hume: compare impression, ideas and recollection of this thing being held up – if
they resemble eachother in colour, we can say it’s white.
Relation of resemblance is what Hume ignored.
Recollected idea of white – remembered from a previous encounter/vision of white.
They are white if they bear the right resemblance of our relation.
We want to avoid resemblance as a true universal. Can’t eliminate that the notion of
resemblance is a true universal. s