Epistemology

1
Epistemology

• Introduction

2
Word Meaning

• Epistemology comes from
• Greek, episteme
• knowledge, logos, the study of, the theory of

3
Typical Epistemological Questions

• What is knowledge? Is there any?
• Where does it come from what is its source?
• What types of knowledge are there?
• What does it take to get it?
• Why would anyone want it, is it good?
• How do you know that you have it?
• What are the differences among concepts like
  belief, knowledge, fact, truth, certainty?

4
The Traditional AnalysisPropositional Knowledge

• Epistemologists are usually concerned with
  propositional knowledge, knowledge-that
• Propositionname for what mental events are
  about a representation of reality

5
Knowledge as an Attainment Concept
Gaining Knowledge
6
Necessary Sufficient Conditions

• Traditional analysis is broken down into three
  supposedly necessary and sufficient conditions

7
Thought Experiment The N S Conditions for
Knowledge
8
KnowledgeDefinition

• A knows that P if and only if
• Truth Condition P
• Belief Condition A believes P
• Justification Condition A is justified in
  believing that P
• Knowledge (properly) justified true belief

9
BeliefMotivations

• Beliefs are our map of reality, our connection to
  the world. They are key for countless reasons
• They are the lenses through which we perceive
  world
• They are basic building block of who we are.
• Wars are fought over beliefs
• Deals are made broken because of beliefs
• People who share same beliefs hang out together
• We avoid people who have different beliefs

10
The Subjective and Objective Sides of Belief

• Subjective side is mental state of conviction
• Objective side is what belief is about

11
Beliefs as Information Channels

• For beliefs to be sensitive to facts there must
  be means by which information gets to you.
• What are our information channels?

12
Calibrating Beliefs

• Beliefs should be sensitive to facts so that if
  the world changes then so will our beliefs about
  it

13
The Picture Theory of Belief

• A belief contains an image of what it is about
• There are many problems with picture theory
• This theory is important because many
  philosophers have presupposed it in thinking
  about knowledge

14
The Various Degrees of Belief

• Certainty of our beliefs vary from barely
  accepting them to being totally convinced of them
  
• Philosophers disagree on how strongly one must
  believe for belief to count as knowledge

15
Are Beliefs Necessary for Knowledge?

• Yes. To know something requires you believe it
• It doesnt make sense to say someone knows
  something if they have never had a thought about
  it

16
Are Beliefs Sufficient For Knowledge?

• No. You can believe something that is false
• To know something, what you know must be true

17
TruthThe Basic Idea

• Belief is not enough for knowledge truth is
  needed
• Beliefs must correspond to the way things really
  are, not just how we think they are
• True Belief is like hitting a target. Believing
  a falsehood is like missing a target

18
Truth and Falsity Concern Propositions

• Truth is not a thing
• A truth is a true proposition a falsity is a
  false proposition
• Truths dont require us to think them for them to
  obtain

19
Is truth necessary for knowledge?

• Yes, knowledge requires truth. Many beliefs are
  false
• Most would deny someone has knowledge if what
  they believe is false

20
Is true belief sufficient for knowledge?

• No, one can believe something, and the belief can
  be true without knowing the thing believed
• In order for a true belief to qualify as
  knowledge, there must be a connection between the
  belief and the world. This link is justification

21
JustificationMotivations

• People frequently worry about whether they really
  know something or not
• Members of a jury try to establish that what they
  believe is true using evidence

22
JustificationDefinition

• Justification is how we test our beliefs. It is
  supposed to reveal why a belief is true
• Beliefs are justified when they are based on the
  best available evidence and there is no good
  evidence against them

23
The Problem of Justification

• The problem of justification is to find a degree
  of justification that is sufficient.
• The question is
• how much
• what kind of justification is adequate?

24
Miscellaneous Definitions

• Irrational Belief A belief without a reliable
  tie to truth
• Rational BeliefA belief with a reliable tie to
  truth

25
Philosophical Options Concerning Knowledge

• Is it possible to have it?
• Does reason provide knowledge of the world
  independent of experience?
• Do our beliefs accurately represent reality?

26
(No Transcript)