Chapter 5 focuses on Arnauld’s account of ideas and perception. Scholars are divided on whether Arnauld is an indirect or direct realist. I begin by distinguishing between these two views as well as a related taxonomy: act theories of idea, act-object theories of ideas, and object theories of ideas. Arnauld’s most detailed treatment of these issues occurs in his debate with Malebranche and in Section 5.2, I offer a brief overview of Malebranche’s indirect realism and object theory of ideas. In Section 5.3, I distinguish between two debates between Arnauld and Malebranche: One is methodological, and one concerns the nature of perception itself. In Section 5.4, I argue that Arnauld’s account of sensory perception is best described as a direct realism, though with several caveats. I also consider some objections to a direct realist reading of Arnauld, especially his account of objective reality and certain passages which seem to reject direct realism. I conclude with some taxonomical considerations and suggest that, while Arnauld’s account of sensory perception is best thought of as a direct realist account, his overall account of perception eludes straightforward categorization.