Refuting Objections to Direct RealismIntroductionRealism is the form of perception in which it is believed that there is an external world outside of our own mind. It is the belief that no matter what we believe to be true or false, the external world is independent of those beliefs. There are two forms of realism: direct and indirect. In this essay, I will argue that direct realism is a more plausible theory of perception than indirect realism by refuting the main arguments against direct realism. I will begin by briefly describing direct and indirect realism and continue by contrasting two of the main arguments that indirect realists use against direct realists. Direct realism versus indirect realismDirect realism is the belief that perception is an immediate and direct understanding of objects that exist in the external world, independent of the mind. Objects in this external world have qualities such as shape, size, texture, color, taste, and smell that exist and continue to acquire their properties whether perceived or not. Direct realists argue that through our senses we have the ability to obtain knowledge about the object itself and that what is perceived is the exact object that exists in this mind-independent external world. Indirect realists do not believe in direct perception of objects in the mind-independent external world, but rather in indirect perception through what is called sense data. Sense data are the supposedly mind-dependent objects through which we are able to perceive the external world. When perceiving an object, indirect realists claim that what we see is not the object itself but a representation of the object and that representation which is seen...... middle of paper ......hallucinations are not sensory data. Therefore, the hallucination argument is invalid. Conclusion Throughout this article, I have explained the differences between direct and indirect realism and refuted two of the main arguments made by indirect realists in favor of direct realism. I can therefore conclude that direct realism is a more plausible theory of perception than indirect realism.Bibliography• Chisholm, Roderick M. “Perceiving: a philosophical study”. Cornell: Cornell University Press, 1957• Huemer, Michael. “Skepticism and the veil of perception.” Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2001• Le Morvan, Pierre. “Arguments against direct realism and how to counter them.” American Philosophical Quarterly, 41, no.2, 2004, pp.221-234 • Thompson, Brad J. “Representationalism and the Hallucination Argument” Pacific Philosophical Quarterly, 89, no.3, 2008, pp.. 384-412