Gödelian platonism and mathematical intuition

Abstract

This paper has two key aims. The first is to clarify the nature of Gödel's platonism. I offer an interpretation of Gödel's remarks on realism and intuition from which a clarified Gödelian position, called conceptual platonism, can be extracted. The second aim is to assess the philosophical merits of this theory. I defend it from charges of mysticism and theology, arguing instead that conceptual platonism is problematic for a more familiar reason. Given the familiarity of this problem, there are implications for a broad family of views in the philosophy of mathematics.