But that doesn’t mean that the ideal things-that-these-brains-are-supposedly-evaluating are themselves subjective. A human brain evaluating how accurate a certain physics theory is results in a subjective assessment of an objective truth; a human brain evaluating whether a certain painting is art results in a subjective assessment of a subjective property. The act of assessment by an imperfect brain adds a layer of subjectivity over something that may or may not be objective in the abstract; but that abstract ideal of that which these brains are supposedly evaluating has a real difference in kind that is well beyond mere consensus.
But how would you know if anything is actually objective? Have you experienced objectivity not through a subjective lens?
This is my point: however strongly we might believe something to be a particular way, it is still something we believe. That doesn’t diminish the quality of the belief or its potential truthfulness, but it is important not to miss this.
But these complications only obscure the basic distinction, they do not fundamentally challenge it.
Again, how do you know that this basic distinction exists? Can you point to it without relying on subjective evidence (evidence that passed through some observer)? If you cannot, then anything we might claim to be “objective” still rests upon subjective assessment of evidence. Objectivity is a constructed idea created by subjective agents.
But how would you know if anything is actually objective? Have you experienced objectivity not through a subjective lens?
This is my point: however strongly we might believe something to be a particular way, it is still something we believe. That doesn’t diminish the quality of the belief or its potential truthfulness, but it is important not to miss this.
Again, how do you know that this basic distinction exists? Can you point to it without relying on subjective evidence (evidence that passed through some observer)? If you cannot, then anything we might claim to be “objective” still rests upon subjective assessment of evidence. Objectivity is a constructed idea created by subjective agents.