How did John Locke argue that all knowledge comes from the senses or observation?

Question

I know this is what Locke believed, but how did he get to this conclusion? Did he have a theory or formula to explain or support his beliefs?

Answer 1

In 'An Essay Concerning Human Understanding', Locke argues that at birth the mind is completely empty. If this is so, there is really no other place for knowledge to come from other than the outside in through the senses. He does additionally allow that reasoning on old sense information can also provide knowledge... but again without the sense data there is nothing for reason to work with.

Answer 2

John Locke Knowledge

Answer 3

It is easy to figure out on your own, tho I don't know Locke's own reasoning. Here:
if the subject of an observation did not exist, such as dog or the sun or a plant rising day after day from the soil, then no observations could be made about anything.
Socrates believed we are born with all knowledge and that we only have to figure out how to get it out of our minds and into our consciousness. The opposite of that is called "tabula rasa," or "empty table," meaning we are born with empty minds and what we know is put in our minds. If this is so, then how? Through the senses, and by observing the senses.

Answer 4

His conclusion was that all ideas come to the individual through sense experience. The mind, is, for him, a blank tablet with only the power to assimilate or organize impressions. As contact with the environment stimulates the senses and causes impressions, the mind receives an organizes these into concepts and ideas. Thus, there are no innate ideas in the mind; all its ideas come from without.

Answer 5

He was an empiricist.

Empiricism is the word that describes this belief.

Scientists have moved on since then.

a classic book describing how they work is Thomas Kuhn's Structure of Scientific Revolutions (early 1960s)

Answer 6

No, he did not provide a formula to support this supposition. However, his theory is supported by the reality that individual experience is the creator of the knowledge resulting as a manisfestation of every persons perception of their enviornment. That perception is created from prior experiences that have contributed to how individuals interpret dynamics that result in the current structure of how they view reality.

Answer 7

This is a vaguely presented question, and so I will Supply a vaguely detailed answer: Causation is an integral aspect of effect, and as such it's more mentionable identity must be cited.