The Enlightenment Sleight of Hand

This segment explores Molyneux's Problem, a thought experiment posed by William Molyneux to John Locke in 1688, which questions whether a person born blind, upon gaining sight, could distinguish a cube from a sphere without touch. Locke, an empiricist, believed they could not, as knowledge for him is based on sensory experience. The article expands on this, examining empiricism and epistemology, and suggesting the problem highlights a "language correspondence trap" where linguistic labels might not seamlessly transfer across different sensory modalities. Ultimately, it argues that Molyneux's problem underscores the limitations of language in capturing and transmitting experience, challenging the notion that words universally map to reality.https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/28/molyneux-locke-and-the-cube-that-shook-empiricism/

Bry Willis' "Midjourney Video Renders – Philosophics" explores the capabilities and limitations of Midjourney's new image-to-video tool, particularly concerning AI censorship and its interpretation of user prompts. The author details their experimental attempts to generate video clips, highlighting how the AI often misinterprets intentions, especially regarding physical proximity and affection between subjects, often triggering unexplained "flags" or producing unexpected and occasionally lewd results. The text also touches upon the technical constraints of video generation, such as rendering time and video length limitations, while ultimately concluding that generative AI serves as a useful, albeit distracting, creative aid for tasks like brainstorming and visualising characters.https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/26/midjourney-video-renders/

The provided text from "Ugly Women – Philosophics" explores the subjectivity of beauty and the limitations of artificial intelligence in comprehending and representing it. The author describes an experiment where an AI image generator, MidJourney, was prompted to create "ugly women," yet it consistently produced aesthetically pleasing, conventionally attractive images. This outcome highlights the AI's bias towards optimising desirability based on its training data, rather than reflecting a true understanding of what is considered unattractive. Furthermore, the text suggests that human society's skewed perception of beauty has become so ingrained that even our concept of "ugliness" is now viewed through a filter of synthetic attractiveness. Ultimately, the piece critiques both the AI's inability to deviate from established beauty standards and humanity's complicity in perpetuating these narrow definitions.https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/25/ugly-women/

Philosopher Bry Willis, who writes fiction as Ridley Park, shares an excerpt from "Ballard Was Already Logged In: Social Media as Digital High-Rise – Philosophics," presents a philosophical critique of social media, arguing that author J.G. Ballard presciently described its pathologies through his fictional works, particularly High-Rise and Crash. The author contends that Ballard's themes of isolation, curated identity, and destructive feedback loops mirror the contemporary experience of social platforms. It posits that social media platforms function as "autonomous systems masquerading as communities," fostering performance over genuine connection and mirroring the structural disintegration seen in Ballard's fictional buildings. The author also draws parallels between the "libidinal economy of attention" on social media and the compulsive nature of events depicted in Ballard's Crash. Ultimately, the piece asserts that Ballard's fiction serves as a "diagnosis masquerading as fiction," revealing the autobiographical nature of what we perceive as digital dystopia.https://ridleypark.blog/2025/06/22/ballards-high-rise-when-brutalism-meets-behavioural-collapse/

Bry Willis of Philosophics Blog explores various philosophical and scientific perspectives on consciousness, arguing that it is not a tangible entity but rather an emergent phenomenon or an "illusion" created by the brain. It likens consciousness to the "wetness" of water, arising from the complex interplay of components rather than a single element. The piece summarises key theories from prominent thinkers like Joscha Bach, who sees consciousness as a virtual self-model, and Thomas Metzinger, who suggests the "self" is a "phenomenal self-model" that the system becomes unaware of as a construct. Other theories mentioned include Daniel Dennett's "Multiple Drafts Model", David Chalmers' "Hard Problem of Consciousness", Giulio Tononi's "Integrated Information Theory", and Karl Friston's "Free Energy Minimisation". Ultimately, the text concludes that the sense of a continuous, unified "self" is a "marvellous fiction" or a "simulation", inviting readers to embrace this understanding rather than lament it.https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/21/conscious-of-consciousness/

Bry Willis shares, "The Purpose of Purpose" from the Philosophics blog, which presents a strong nihilistic viewpoint. The author argues against the human tendency to manufacture purpose and meaning, asserting that these concepts are invented fictions rather than inherent truths. The text critiques societal structures and individual pursuits as a "cosmic theatre", comparing human endeavours to Sisyphus's rock or children's tea parties, ultimately concluding that life "doesn't mean anything". Whilst acknowledging the functional aspects of life, the author warns against confusing labour or imagination with genuine meaning, promoting an acceptance of cosmic indifference.

Bry Willis of Philosophics Blog argues that the Enlightenment, while seemingly a break from religious thought, actually re-packaged theological concepts within secular systems, particularly the legal framework. It posits that ideas like "guilty mind" (mens rea) and retributive justice are direct descendants of religious notions of sin and divine punishment. Citing philosopher Galen Strawson's argument against ultimate moral responsibility, the text contends that without a concept of being "causa sui" (self-caused), free will and the basis for retributive justice crumble. Ultimately, the author suggests a shift from punishment based on outrage to responses grounded in outcomes, compassion, and prevention, advocating for a fundamental "rewrite" of societal ethical structures to truly move beyond theological residue.https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/19/the-enlightenment-sleight-of-hand/

The philosophical essay by philosopher Bry Willis, "Can One Obstruct Justice in a Place it Doesn’t Exist?" critiques the concept of "justice" as applied to the US immigration system, particularly in the context of ICE raids. The author argues that obstructing such operations is not truly obstructing justice, but rather disrupting bureaucratic violence that masquerades as legal process. The text contends that the American justice system has become a "simulation" of fairness, serving state power and economic interests rather than genuine equity. Ultimately, the piece suggests renaming the charge of "obstruction of justice" to reflect its true nature, such as "Obstruction of Procedure" or "Obstruction of the Industrial Deportation Complex™".https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/13/can-one-obstruct-justice-in-a-place-it-doesnt-exist/

Bry Willis shares an essay from a philosophy blog titled "Philosophics," specifically a piece called "Metamorphosis Inverted." This essay offers a speculative philosophical reinterpretation of Kafka's The Metamorphosis, shifting the central horror from Gregor Samsa transforming into an insect to the hypothetical horror of an insect waking up in a human body. It explores themes of existentialism, identity, and the human condition, suggesting that the perceived tragedy of Gregor's fate mirrors the inherent absurdity and burden of human existence itself. The author posits that the true nightmare lies not in devolution, but in the forced engagement with complex societal constructs and the search for "purpose" that defines humanity. The piece challenges conventional interpretations of Kafka's work, using it as a springboard for broader philosophical musings on agency, perception, and modern alienation.https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/12/metamorphosis-inverted/

Bry Willis from "Philosophics Blog" critiques the historical and philosophical underpinnings of private property rights, particularly as conceptualised by John Locke. The author challenges Locke's "first-come, first-served" justification for land ownership, arguing that it is arbitrary and exclusionary, especially given that most land was already claimed when many people came into existence. The piece introduces Parfit's long-termism to highlight the inherent temporal and speciesist biases within traditional property concepts, suggesting that current generations' stewardship often depletes resources at the expense of future generations and non-human life. Ultimately, the text dismisses the notion that "mixing one's labour" with land magically confers ownership, advocating for a re-evaluation of resource justice and the morality of private property.https://philosophics.blog/2025/06/11/parfits-long-termism-and-property-rights/