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Recept

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"Recept" (pronounced /ˈrˌsɛpt/) is a term used in the work of 19th-century psychologist George Romanes to refer to an idea that is formed by the repetition of percepts (i.e., successive percepts of the same object).[1] The idea is similar to that of concatenated impressions, as seen in the work of David Hume. It is also associated with the concepts of "construct" and "influent".[2]

In the book Mental Evolution of Man, Romanes introduced recept to support his argument that Charles Darwin's theory of the origin of language is valid by presenting more evidence from philology.[3] In his conceptualization, recept denotes the process, which involves memory, that transpires when a human child as a "higher animal" is faced with a sensory situation it perceives as familiar.[3] This familiarity elicits a response based on its meaning and significance.[3] Romanes also stated that, recept or a receptual thought is a compound idea - one the differs from a general or abstract idea - of past similar perceptions.[4] It has been interpreted as an idea that one is not aware he has.[4] It is noted that recept is not widely embraced because Romanes book is so little read.[3] The term is used in Richard Maurice Bucke's book, Cosmic Consciousness: A Study in the Evolution of the Human Mind. Bucke was a 19th-century Canadian psychiatrist.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Webster's New International Dictionary. Springfield, Massachusetts: G. & C. Merriam. 1913. p. 1781. "A mental image or idea formed by successive percepts of the same or like objects, and thus accentuating their common characters; a generic image."
  2. ^ James, William (2001-01-01). Psychology: The Briefer Course. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, Inc. pp. 234–235. ISBN 0486416046.
  3. ^ a b c d Auroux, Sylvain; Koerner, E. F. K.; Niederehe, Hans-Josef; Versteegh, Kees (2001). History of the Language Sciences / Geschichte der Sprachwissenschaften / Histoire des sciences du langage. 2. Teilband. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 1687. ISBN 3110167352.
  4. ^ a b Mitchell, Robert W.; Thompson, Nicholas S.; Miles, H. Lyn (1997). Anthropomorphism, Anecdotes, and Animals. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. p. 19. ISBN 0791431258.
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