Abstract
In this book we have presented our philosophy of artefacts. We started from an action-theoretical perspective, clarifying the intuitive connection between artefacts as useful objects and the goals, beliefs and actions of agents. After analysing artefact using and designing, we focussed on the characteristic of artefacts that has drawn most philosophical attention: their functions. We criticised existing function theories on the basis of our desiderata and we presented our alternative. This ICE-function theory analysed how functions are justifiably ascribed to artefacts, and connected function ascriptions to the goals and actions for which objects are employed, and to the physicochemical structure of these objects. Then, we argued that our account meets the desiderata and finally explored how our ICE-theory applies to other domains than the technical.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Baker, L. R. (2004). The ontology of artefacts. Philosophical Explorations 7, 99–111.
Baker, L. R. (2000). Persons and Bodies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Barsalou, L. W., S. A. Sloman, and S. E. Chaigneau (2004). The HIPE theory of function. In L. Carlson and E. van der Zee (Eds.), Functional Features in Language and Space: Insights from Perception, Categorization and Development, pp. 131–148. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Barton, M. E. and L. K. Kamatsu (1989). Defining features of natural kinds and artifacts. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research 18, 433–447.
Chaigneau, S. E., L. W. Barsalou, and S. A. Sloman (2004). Assessing the causal structure of function. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 133, 601–625.
Geach, P. T. (1967). Identity. Review of Metaphysics 21, 3–12.
Gelman, S. A. and P. Bloom (2000). Young children are sensitive to how an object was created when deciding what to name it. Cognition 76, 91–103.
Gentner, D. (1978). What looks like a jiggy but acts like a zimbo? A study of early word meaning using artificial objects. Papers and Reports on Child Language Development 15, 1–6.
Houkes, W. and A. W. M. Meijers (2006). The ontology of artefacts: The hard problem. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 37, 118–131.
Houkes, W. and P. E. Vermaas (2004). Actions versus functions: A plea for an alternative metaphysics of artifacts. Monist 87, 52–71.
Ingold, T. (2000). On weaving a basket. In T. Ingold (Ed.), The Perception of the Environment, pp. 339–348. London: Routledge.
Kemler-Nelson, D. G., R. Russell, N. Duke, and K. Jones (2000). Two-year-olds name artifacts by their function. Child Development 71, 1271–1288.
Kroes, P. A. and A. W. M. Meijers (2006). The dual nature of technical artefacts. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 37, 1–4.
Landau, B., L. B. Smith, and S. S. Jones (1998). Object shape, object function, and object name. Journal of Memory and Language 38, 1–27.
Lowe, E. J. (1995). The metaphysics of abstract objects. Journal of Philosophy 92, 509–524.
Malt, B. C. and E. C. Johnson (1992). Do artifact concepts have cores? Journal of Memory and Language 31, 195–217.
Matan, A. and S. Carey (2001). Development changes within the core of artifact concepts. Cognition 78, 1–26.
Noonan, H. W. (1980). Objects and Identity. The Hague: Nijhoff.
Putnam, H. (1975). The meaning of ‘meaning’. In H. Putnam (Ed.), Mind, Language and Reality, pp. 215–271. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Rea, M. (Ed.) (1997). Material Constitution: A Reader, Lanham, MD. Rowman and Littlefield.
Romano, G. (2009). Thoughtful Things: An Investigation in the Descriptive Epistemology of Artifacts. Ph. D. thesis, Eindhoven University of Technology.
Smith, E. E. and D. L. Medin (1981). Categories and Concepts. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Vermaas, P. E. and W. Houkes (2006a). Technical functions: A drawbridge between the intentional and structural natures of technical artefacts. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 37, 5–18.
Wiggins, D. (2001). Sameness and Substance Renewed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Van Inwagen, P. (1990). Material Beings. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Houkes, W., Vermaas, P.E. (2010). The nature of artefacts. In: Technical Functions. Philosophy of Engineering and Technology, vol 1. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3900-2_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3900-2_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-3899-9
Online ISBN: 978-90-481-3900-2
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)