Cardiff University | Prifysgol Caerdydd ORCA
Online Research @ Cardiff 
WelshClear Cookie - decide language by browser settings

Phenomenological disjunctivism

Mitchell, Jonathan 2026. Phenomenological disjunctivism. Ergo 13 , pp. 1178-1204. 10.3998/ergo.10999

[thumbnail of ergo-10999-mitchell.pdf]
Preview
PDF - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives.

Download (238kB) | Preview

Abstract

Consider two experiences, one a veridical perceptual experience of a black cube in front of one, and a matching hallucinatory experience. From the perspective of the subject undergoing these experiences they at least can be phenomenologically indistinguishable. Call this the phenomenological indistinguishability claim (PI for short). My aim in this paper is to argue for a distinctive view which I call phenomenological disjunctivism, drawing on the works of classical phenomenologist Edmund Husserl. Phenomenological disjunctivism significantly qualifies the PI claim, and in doing so is able to establish, through phenomenological analysis of the relevant experiences, an intrinsic difference in kind between veridical perception and (matching) hallucination, that is a difference in “essence” purely on phenomenological grounds. Phenomenological disjunctivism accepts that veridical perception and hallucination either are or at least can be phenomenologically indistinguishable at a time but argues that due to a key difference in the possibilities of fulfilment of their “horizon structure,” they are nonetheless phenomenologically distinguishable as fundamentally different types of experience over time (i.e., diachronically). This is the key Husserlian insight I will be reconstructing and attempting to make sense of in an articulation of phenomenological disjunctivism.

Item Type: Article
Date Type: Publication
Status: Published
Schools: Schools > English, Communication and Philosophy
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > B Philosophy (General)
Publisher: Michigan Publishing
ISSN: 2330-4014
Date of First Compliant Deposit: 2 July 2025
Date of Acceptance: 12 May 2025
Last Modified: 21 Sep 2026 11:26
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/178254

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item Edit Item

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

View more statistics