Abstract

Gertler has proposed a new problem concerning the criterion for the distinction between internalism and externalism about the mental content, in an attempt to show that the technical terms, “internalism,” and “externalism,” are seriously vague. The idea behind Gertler’s argument is that any criterion for such a distinction has to appeal to the notion of “intrinsic to the thinker” while this concept is, for her, descriptively and normatively vague and problematic. In this paper, I will first introduce the internalism-externalism debate in the philosophy of mind, and then elaborate Gertler’s problem. After explicating Gertler’s proposed criteria, I will finally seek to uncover and elaborate her wrong presuppositions and methodological errors.