Final answer:
Empiricism focuses on sensory experience as the basis for knowledge, whereas idealism emphasizes thought and consciousness. Despite their differences, empiricism may implicitly contain elements that lead to idealistic thought, given its struggle to explain certain forms of non-sensory knowledge.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question 'Does empiricism already possess the seeds of idealism?' bridges the gap between two major philosophical movements: empiricism and idealism. Empiricism is grounded in the belief that knowledge comes primarily from sensory experience. It posits that nothing is in the intellect that was not first in the senses, and emphasizes the role of evidence and experimentation. Renowned empiricists include Bacon, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Mill, who have all contributed to the development of this philosophy.
On the other hand, forms of idealism such as skeptic idealism, problematic idealism, and dogmatic idealism, argue for the primacy of thought or consciousness and suggest that material objects, space, and reality outside of thought may be constructs or non-existent beyond perception. Idealism challenges the empirical view by questioning the existence of knowledge that cannot be sensed directly, like mathematical truths or the overall structure of the universe, which remain beyond direct experience.
Considering this, empiricism does indeed contain the potential for idealistic thought. The 'problems with empiricism' recognize the difficulty empiricists face in explaining how we can have knowledge of things beyond direct sensory experience. This acknowledgment opens a gateway to idealistic interpretations of reality, where the role of perception and the mind becomes more prominent. Thus, discussions about empiricist limitations naturally veer towards idealist perspectives, suggesting that within empiricism, there lies an inherent connection to idealism.