A Pluralist's Guide to Solving Molyneux's Problem

This book presents a novel pluralist strategy for answering Molyneux's problem: Would a person, born blind but given sight, identify a shape previously known only by their touch? The author interweaves historical scholarship with contemporary philosophical work and empirical research on animal, infant, and adult human perception.

Brian Glenney is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Norwich University. He has wide interests in the history of philosophy and sensory perception. He focuses on Molyneux's problem and co-edited the book Molyneux's Question and the History of Philosophy (2020), the special issue "Molyneux's Question Today," (2024) and has authored encyclopedia entries and journal articles.

Plan of the Book 1. Seven Problems for the Two-Choice Approach to Molyneux's Problem 2. Molyneux's Tool and the Philosophy of Perception 3. Puzzle Pluralism: A Broad Explanatory Account for Molyneux's Problem 4. A Pluralist Resolution to Molyneux's Problem 5. Locke's Answer and a Plug and Play History of Molyneux's Problem 6. The New Molyneux Problem 7. Molyneux's Animals: Promises and Problems 8. Meaningful Movements of Molyneux's Animals 9. Molyneux's Underwater Animals and the Possibility of a Supramodal Sense 10. A New Skill-Based Experimental Paradigm for Testing Molyneux's Problem Epilogue