From the time of writing Structure of Behavior and Phenomenology of Perception, Merleau-Ponty wanted to show, in opposition to the idea that drove the tradition beginning with John Locke, that perception was not the causal product of atomic sensations.
Od vremena pisanja Strukture ponašanja i Fenomenologije percepcije, Merlo-Ponti je želeo da pokaže da nasuprot ideji koja je vodila tradiciju počevši sa Džonom Lokom, da percepcija nije uzročni proizvod atomskih senzacija.