Direct vs Indirect Realism

As one is born into an environment of endless sensations, one is only able to experience this world with a total of five senses from the time of birth until the time of death.  One would think that if the five senses are the only manner in which one is able to sense or experience the world, then these sense mechanisms must be infallible, because to think otherwise would be the equivalent of introducing doubt in the only system that allows human beings to interact with the world.  This introduction of doubt is the foundation of the Problem of Perception which states a simple question:  “how does one reconcile the apparent obvious truths that our experience of the world is filled with the possibility of certain kinds of perceptual error?” (Crane) 

There exists two forms of thought on the manner to describe how the world is perceived:  Direct and Indirect Realism.  Direct Realists claim that objects found in the natural world are perceived independently of the perceivers. Indirect Realists affirms that objects exist independently of the mind; however, through perception, an individual cannot directly engage with an object, but only with an intermediate of that object.  I favor the claim of the Indirect Realists from a strong background in biology.  Due to the manner in which we mechanically sense objects with our optical system I believe that we are always viewing the world through an intermediate.  For example, the manner in which individuals experience the world is similar to one looking at one’s body in a mirror:  the only way in which one is able to see is through the medium of the mirror (O’Brien).  This example can be further extrapolated to not only the mirror but also to a football game.  Indirect Realists view the world in much the way one would view a football game on T.V.  The event (the game) is occurring at another place somewhere in the world, but when one views the screen one sees the game.  The T.V. is the symbol for how Indirect Realists picture the world because it acts as an intermediate for watching the football game.  This example can be substituted for any other event in the world. 

Due to the documented manner in which our optical system has been explained, it is difficult for me to accept the Direct Realist view of the world because of the existence of the problems of perception.  The perceptual problem of Illusion and Hallucination are quite real, and serve to discredit the Direct Realist view of the world.  

Crane, Tim. "The Problem of Perception." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 5 Mar. 2005. Web. <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/perception-problem/>.

O'Brian, Daniel. "Objects of Perception." Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy,. Web. 2 Oct. 2012. <http://www.iep.utm.edu/perc-obj/#H2>.