Basic Concepts in Epistemology Flashcards
Belief
Something someone believes is true, regardless whether it’s true or not.
Truth
Something that corresponds to reality or the way things really are
Knowledge
a true belief must be justified; there must be good reasons or evidence to support the belief.
Explanation
- focus on describing events or experiences
- Sharing what has happened to us or what we’ve seen to help others
- Psychological bc it largely refers to personal history/experience + emotions
Justification
- Try to prove that it’s true
- Making a claim/statement + giving reasons or evidence to support it - Persuading someone else to see + accept our belief as true
- Philosophical bc it appeals to logic + reasoning
Plato
Argued that true knowledge could only be attained through reason + contemplation of abstract ideas
Descartes
- Questioned nature of knowledge + limits of human understanding
- Famously sought to establish a foundation of knowledge that could not be doubted using his understanding of math
- Developed a method of questioning everything he believed until he reached something he couldn’t doubt
- Famous conclusion “I think, therefore I am.” = his 1st basic truth - Believed in rationalism
- Senses aren’t reliable = we should be skeptical/doubt everything they tell us
- Started foundationalism
Locke
Believed in empiricism (learning from experience)
Hume
- Believed in empiricism (learning through experience)
- Criticized inductive reasoning - Argued that we can’t be sure the future will always be like the past, even if that’s what has happened before
- Believed that out belief that things will keep happening the same way is more about habit + tradition than about true reasoning
- Emphasized the role of experience + skepticism in shaping our beliefs
Justification Theories: Foundationalism
Basic, self-evident, + incorrigible beliefs that form the foundation for all other beliefs
- Theory assumes that we can know some things for certain + that these things provide a solid foundation for all other knowledge
- Ex. “I exist”
Justification Theories: Coherentism
Knowledge is a web of beliefs that are mutually supporting + consistent.
- Someone’s belief is true only if it is coherent w/ all or most of their other beliefs
- Theory assumes that is knowledge is a complex + interconnected system, + any one belief can only be justified in relation to others
Justification Theories: Contenxtualism
What counts as knowledge + as sufficient evidence can vary depending on the context or situation.
- Theory recognizes that the standards for what counts as knowledge, how it is justified, + how we use the verb “to know” can vary depending on cultural, social, + historical factors
Rationalism
- Source: Reason & intuition
- Reliability: Certain & necessary
- A priori knowledge
- Ex. Math, logic, metaphysics
Empiricism
- Source: Sensory experience
- Reliability: Probably & contingent
- A posteriori knowledge
- Ex. Psychology, history
Inductive Reasoning
PROBABILITY
- Looking at examples + make a general rule based on them
- If the premises are true –> conclusion is probably true
