Perception under three registers/points of view: Russell, Peirce and Caeiro

Abstract

This paper was written as part of a graduate course on Fernando Pessoa, given by professor Segolin at PUC-SP. It aims to present three points of view with respect to perception. In this paper, we have based ourselves on Blikstein’s work on the movie “The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser” to contrast three differing points of view regarding the phenomenon of “perception”. Although classified as an “extra-linguistic thing”, perception is closely linked to the linguistic phenomenon itself, and precedes it: behind the sign dwells this cognitive phenomenon called perception. Here we will discuss the differences between the theories of perception by Bertrand Russell, Charles Sanders Peirce and Alberto Caeiro, heteronym of the poet Fernando Pessoa. In Russell’s work, perception has an important status, serving as the basis for his theory of knowledge. Nevertheless, throughout his work, Russell changed his treatment of perception without developing a complete theory for it. Although Peirce also did not produce a systematic theory of perception, it is clear that his phenomenology is based upon it. He explicitly states that Firstness and Secondness, and therefore all logical forms of thought, are given in perception. Alberto Caeiro lifts perception to an even higher status. To him, not only knowledge is mediated by perception, and therefore inaccessible, but also the search for this knowledge is irrelevant and superfluous. To him, nothing else matters other than the sensorial relationship between his consciousness and external objects.