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Animal thought exceeds language-of-thought

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 September 2023

Angelica Kaufmann Open the ORCID record for Angelica Kaufmann [Opens in a new window]  and
Albert Newen Open the ORCID record for Albert Newen [Opens in a new window]
Angelica Kaufmann
Affiliation:
Institut für Philosophie II, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany angelica.kaufmann@gmail.com www.angelicakaufmann.com albert.newen@rub.de https://www.pe.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/philosophie/ii/newen/kontakt.html.en
Albert Newen
Affiliation:
Institut für Philosophie II, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany angelica.kaufmann@gmail.com www.angelicakaufmann.com albert.newen@rub.de https://www.pe.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/philosophie/ii/newen/kontakt.html.en
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Abstract

Quilty-Dunn et al. claim that all complex infant and animal reasoning implicate language-of-thought hypothesis (LOTH)-like structures. We agree with the authors that the mental life of animals can be explained in representationalist terms, but we disagree with their idea that the complexity of mental representations is best explained by appealing to abstract concepts, and instead, we explain that it doesn't need to.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 46 , 2023 , e279
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

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