Universals
This thread is devoted to the nature and problem of universals, particularly in relation to the Objectivist theory of concept-formation. What are universals? What is the problem related to them? I'll begin with the Wikipedia entry--to present the issue as neutrally as possible.
A universal is something that particular things have in common. This common something can be a kind of thing, a property of a thing, or a relation of a thing. Beyond that, there are theories about the further i
Epistemologically, I don't see any problem with Rand's description of concept formation in Chapters 1 and 2, including as it pertains to units. One proceeds from viewing individual concretes, to generalizing them into a view of units of a kind.
Metaphysically speaking obviously all concretes intrinsically are units of a kind. Concept formation is just the inductive process of recognizing them as such and identifying the kind that they belong to.
If we had some sort of diaphanous percep