An object of the mind is an object which exists in the imagination, but which, in the real world, can only be represented or modeled. Some such objects are mathematical abstractions, literary concepts, or fictional scenarios.
Closely related are intentional objects, which are what thoughts and feelings are about, even if they are not about anything real (such as thoughts about unicorns, or feeling of apprehension about a dental appointment which is subsequently cancelled). However, intentional objects can coincide with real objects (as in thoughts about horses, or a feeling of regret about a missed appointment).
Read more about Object Of The Mind: Mathematical Objects, Logical Sequences, Philosophy of Mind, Invented Sources, Convenient Fictions, Science, Self-reference, Nonexistent Objects
Famous quotes containing the words object of, object and/or mind:
“Life at its noblest leaves mere happiness far behind; and indeed cannnot endure it.... Happiness is not the object of life: life has no object: it is an end in itself; and courage consists in the readiness to sacrifice happiness for an intenser quality of life.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“I wish you would not let him plunge into a ôvortex of
Dissipation.ö I do not object to the Thing, but I cannot bear the
expression; it is such thorough novel slang—and so old, that I
dare say Adam met with it in the first novel he opened.”
—Jane Austen (1775–1817)
“‘All that was, seemed as if it had been not;
And all the gazer’s mind was strewn beneath
Her feet like embers; and she, thought by thought,
‘Trampled its sparks into the dust of death;”
—Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822)