Thomas Moore Lacked Common Sense :: Philosophy Essays

Thomas Moore Lacked Common Sense Moore was a great philosopher. He really deserves a hand for his proof for an external world. Moore did something that no other philosopher had done before or has done since; he successfully proved the existence of an external world. Not only did he prove the existence of an external world in fact, but he also did it rather briefly and with no further resources necessary than his own two hands. Once one is acquainted with Moore’s proof, it becomes evident almost immediately just how much sense Moore’s â€Å"common sense† makes. To start with, in the proof of an external world, Moore sets some goals. These goals are to â€Å"clarify the problem of the existence of external objects† and to â€Å"prove that external objects exist† (Goldstein 2002, handout). Moore goes on to prove these goals with his brilliant proof of his theories. The proof as a whole is actually two proofs, one being a sub-derivation of the other. It is beneficial to the student of philosophy if they attempt these proofs as the study Moore. The requirements for the first proof are two hands, so anyone attempting this proof needs to acquire two hands. Now, one must follow Moore’s proof exactly, saying first â€Å"here is one hand, and here is another,† then gesturing with both hands (Pojman 2003, 53). It is important that these steps be followed precisely; else, Moore’s proof is not reproduced but is instead bastardized. The conclusion, which follows from this premise, is that there are two hands. The second proof begins with these premises: 1. If there are two hands here, there are physical objects. 2. There are two hands here. 3. If there are physical objects, there are external objects. 4. There are physical objects. The conclusion that follows is, â€Å"Therefore, there are external objects,† (Pojman 2003, 53-54). So, there is no possible argument that could break so sound a logic as this, if the premises are true then they must guarantee the truth of the conclusion if this is a valid argument.