John Locke, born in Warrington, Somerset, England 1632 went to Westminster school and then to the University of Oxford. At oxford he studied medicine, then later became an influential philosopher; writing about philosophy, epistemology, and education. Locke’s writing helped found modern western philosophy. Locke was an empirical philosopher. He wrote the book ‘an essay concerning human understanding’. In his book, quote ‘lock tried to inquire into the origin, certainty, and extend of human knowledge. His theory was “representative realism” meaning that people don’t know anything, they don’t know what is actually there, but the sensations they get from the object they see. Quote- According to Locke, when we say we are looking at an external object, what we are really doing is attending to the perception or ‘ideas’ of the object in our mind. For example we see a tree outside a window. What we are seeing is not the actual tree itself but the representation of a picture that we are receiving from our brain and eyes. We can say “the tree is outside the window” we are getting a primary image of the tree (the size, shape and weight). The tree produces secondary qualities (color green, texture, smell etc.). These secondary qualities exist in the tree only as the power of the tree produce in us ideas. The characteristics of the tree are just ideas that are produced from the information it send us. These ideas are called “representative realism”. This is the theory that we perceive objects indirectly by means of our “representations” or ideas or perceptions from them. Some which are accurate copies or representations or reflections of the real properties of external objects of the objects outside the mind. These ideas for Locke are simple and complex ideas. Simple ideas are ideas of sensations and reflections. Ideas of sensations are for example when you physically look at something in front of you. Ideas of reflection for example is when you are thinking or “reflecting” back at the object you had seen in front of you a while back. Complex ideas are compounding, relating and abstracting. Compounding ideas are two or more simple ideas. Relating ideas are when connecting ideas with another relationship. For example if you had a bad experience with a