how do i know that when i see something red, you see it the same as me?

Question

...because i see everything i presume as red in the same way, but that doesnt mean you see red (or indeed any other colour) in the same manner as me because you see everything you presume to be red in the same way - confused? me too!

Answer 1

that is where opinion comes into the equation.

Answer 2

You don't know. That is why we can very often have a failure of communication--and is one of the reasons that philosophy is so important.

Color--one of the "secondary qualities" of an object--does not really exist in the object. Color is something that exists in the interaction between the object (or, more precisely, light reflected from the object) and an observer. By itself, an object has a potential to appear a certain color. But if an apple exists in total darkness, then the "redness" of the apple is only a potential that is never realized. Color, as we perceive it, is in the light reflected off of an object.

So when two people "see the same thing," there are two factors involved that mess up the process. First, two people cannot see exactly the same thing. Even if we are side-by-side, different light rays are striking our eyes. If you look, then move so that I can look from the same perspective--different light rays. TWO PEOPLE CANNOT HAVE THE SAME EXPERIENCE. That is one problem.

The other problem is that people are individuals, and while most people are pretty much the same as far as things like how their eyes work, there are still differences. Some people are colorblind. Some people "see" color differently. When you see something and call it "red" and I see the same object and call it "red," here is what is happening--you identify the color you are seeing as something that you have learned to call "red," and I identify the color I am perceiving as a shade that I have learned to call "red." And as long as both of us learned to identify "red" by looking at similar objects, we will be able to communicate about color fairly effectively.

The study of color is rather fascinating, actually. The short answer to you question is that it is virtually impossible for the other person to see it the same as you. The best we can hope for is perceptions that are sufficiently similar to allow us to communicate effectively when we talk about it.

Answer 3

you can never have this certainty.
it's the beattle in the box which each of us have and we all know that it is the beattle in the box I and you and the rest have, but (for some reason) we cannot look into each others' boxes to see if the other has the same thing inside. but anyway we agree (know) that this is a beattle.
Colour itself, in turn, is a relation of a matter's position reflecting sun rays and the rays' frequency and so the angle we catch with our eye and how our brain deals with it.
So why not our position influencing the colour perceived? - you can observe it especially in case of hardly defined colours like turquoise, bordeaux, etc.
Another thing is that there are differences within colours' perception depending on different cultures and languages defining the colours (Hungarians for example have two totally distinct reds and I guess Northern people have at least a few for whites - like Inuit have multiple names for snow).
...and more and more...

Answer 4

You don't.

We have to assume our perceptions are reasonably alike, otherwise we could never communicate. This is a point made by Wittgenstein in his later works referring to the "language game" - the "beetle in the box analogy" to which you have referred relates to this. You will find this analogy in Wittgenstein's "Philosophical Investigations"

Scientifically observable similarities in different people's brain functions suggest they they see colours differently.

Of course, if somebody is colour blind and you are not it would seem that the two of you perceive red differently: for instance the colur blind person may not distinguish objects that you think are red from ones that you think are yellow or green

Answer 5

I don't think that we will ever know what red truely is. I think that we all have a general idea of what red looks like, but as there are so many different tones and hues, people don't see red as being the same thing to someone else. This is just my thinking anyway =)

Answer 6

Because colours, like other concepts, are part of what is known in Philosophy as "public knowledge". The colour red is [called] "red" because it is recogonised "publically" as being different from "green" or "blue". If there wasn't any public agreement concerning "everyday" experience (incl. which colour we may all recognise as "red" rather than "green") then social life (as we know it) would quite simply be impossible.
[For an Exposition resembling this view : read LUDWIG WITTGENSTEIN's later writings].

Answer 7

bec. in general we see that most minds (except for crazy ppl) operate in the same manner catagorically, meaning the thing you preceive actually exists not just in your mind. Plato made the point that if things only existed in our minds then objective reality would be impossible, bec what is true in my mind is not always true in your mind. And its well known as easily provable objective reality exists. Also just practically when the person describes red they are always the same way

Answer 8

If you saw a red colour then so would another person because all humans have colour vision. However the exception is if you are colour blind in which instance you would see colours oddly e.g. you cannot recognise colours.

Answer 9

Apparently, you don't... Visit Ikon gallery in Birmingham from the 26th July- The artist Olafur Eliasson is doing a project exactly about that!

Answer 10

So who told you that red is red? Just because we agree that something is red doesn't make it so. Scientifically, certain colors fall under certain classifications (not sure how they're measured). But red is probably blue, and it's all a huge conspiracy....

Answer 11

we are taught what colors are in elementary school (kindergarten) so we can recognize the difference in color. I guess when we see red it would probably be the same as everyone else. There are different shades of red and we call
them by different names but i think we would see the same shade of red unless u are color blind.