Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Properties (Metaphysics)

An explanation of the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic properties including examples and questions around relational and locational definitions of intrinsic and extrinsic properties.

Sponsors: Joshua Furman, Joshua Opell, NBA_Ruby, Eugene SY, Antoinemp1, Antibody, Ismail Fagundes, Adrien Ecoffet, Tom Amedro, Christopher McGevna, Joao Sa, and Dennis Sexton. Thanks for your support!

Information for this video gathered from The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy, The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy and more!

[MajestyofReason]

Excellent video! One quick note: It is not clear that shape is intrinsic. One might think--plausibly--that shape is relational: the shape of an object depends upon the space in which it is embedded. Maybe something that is round when embedded in near-Euclidean space would not be round were it embedded in some much less near-Euclidean space.

[BelegaerTheGreat]

Intrinsic VS Extrinsic Properties:

Intrinsic properties are properties objects have because they "are in a way", not "interact with the world in a way". E.g. volume, shape, hunger. "Those are independent from other objects in the world. Other objects may change the volume of an object, but the object does not HAVE volume in virtue of having some relation to those objects."

Extrinsic properties, the rest. E.g. being a mother, being within a mile of home.

(Fun fact: mass is intrinsic, weight is extrinsic.)

2:45 There are some properties that relate to their object itself, like "having more leaves than branches". Classified as intrinsic, though I would see no problem in classifying them otherwise.

[rehya]

I needed this for my gcse physics, and it helped sm, as mass is an intrinsic property

[virtuosic]

Seem pretty simple to resolve:
Intrinsic properties are those n-ary properties that internally individuate an object.
Extrinsic properties are those n-ary properties that externally individuate an object.

[kenikthyan]

Is it not curious to consider that extrinsic is nearly always dependent on the external body for definition while the intrinsic is independent of so? This then means that the extrinsic value exists only because of the external body which otherwise it would be free of. To use the wonderful Schrodinger's cat example, the cat's existence is independent of our observation of it but in observing it, we are able to characterise it as either alive or dead. Its state of existence is therefore extrinsic while its very existence is intrinsic.

[abdoolmoron]

Thank you for this upload. Useful for my study.

[laurentius.dominus]

Sinceramente, este es un modo bastante rudimentario de distinguir entre lo que es propio de los individuos de una especie y lo que no les es propio. Pero advierto que aun así se distingue mal. Lo que es propio de los individuos de una especie no se da en otras especies. Ergo, el uso de las voces _property, _ _intrinsic_ y _extrinsic_ debería revisarse con mayor cautela.

[socraticsceptic]

I guess what one wants to say is that an intrinsic property of x is part of x whereas an extrinsic property is not. Modern mereology cannot fulfill the role of providing a sense of 'parthood' that would be required since there are no 'natural wholes' in this classical (David Lewis) mereology.
e.g. my heart is an intrinsic part of me since it is a true part of me as a whole. whereas the number of people sitting in the room with me now is extrinsic (though might be impactful), and not a part of me in any real sense. in this example my heart is no more or less a part of me (some arbitrarily defined whole) than the number of people in the room with me, for David Lewis and that line of mereology.

The problem is creating a mereology (along Aristotelian lines) that clearly lays out how properties can be part of things (and also other properties) and that is coherent and discriminates between structured and natural whole and mere heaps...

[johnhill]

Excellent video. Btw, this reminded me of a new channel called “Friendly Philosophy”. Worth checking out.

[cliffordhodge]

Probably the way to start with differentiating properties is to distinguish those which can be objectively, as it were, determined, and those which are intensional and subjective. For example, Adam's being taller than (the 6'0") Bob and his being younger than the 30-yr-old Bob are different from his being more likable than Bob. His being taller than Bob is apparently just a different description for his being taller than 6 feet; and his being younger is apparently an alternative description for his being younger than 30. At least, his being the height that he is would seem to be a simple fact. We are inclined to say he is taller than Bob by virtue of being taller than 6 feet, but not that he is taller than 6 feet by virtue of being taller than Bob. To decide his relative likability, we must ask, "In whose opinion?" Of course, this may yield a paradox: If "A is taller than B" = "A is taller than the height of B" = "A is taller than 6 feet, " then how do we explain the loss of the property "being taller than Bob" as Bob continues to grow?

[chaoskiddo]

*tilts head*
Mass is intrinsic
weight is not because you weigh less on the moon than on earth
it changes with the gravitational field
But volume is intrinsic despite it changing with pressure and temperature
🥲
Hmm 🤔
Im short relative to the average human height -extrinsic
My measured speed is relative to the Earth -also extrinsic
My volume is .. volume is... m^3
One meter is fixed and determined by a universal constant value... so volume intrinsic? But
Time and distance? Not- rela-t-ive in-t-ri-n-s huhghhh but time slows down depending on where you are or how fast you go so re-la-tive so ex-t-r-ihighghhh

No, i don't get it 🥲

Okay
Either everything extrinsic except universal constants as intrisic properties of our universe
Or everything intrinsic except it becomes extrinsic when we say "-er"
Like harder better faster stronger executioner
Or I should go back to studying for me exams before the rest of my braincells melt away as well and try to escape through my ears