Definition of Knowledge Flashcards
What does Plato say knowledge is?
Knowledge is :
Justified
True
Belief
(JTB)
What are the 3 types of knowledge?
Ability (how) - I know how to ride a bike
Acquaintance (of) - I know Fred well
Propositional (that) - I know that London is the capital of the UK
When talking generally, we are referring to PROPOSITIONAL
What is the tripartite view?
Propositional knowledge (that) is:
JTB
What conditions does the tripartite view require?
Necessary = unmarried + man are necessary for a bachelor
Sufficient = being an unmarried man is sufficient to be a bachelor
Therefore, JTB is necessary for knowledge
(Gettier argues otherwise)
What is Gettier’s first example and what does it show about JTB?
- Smith and Jones
- 10 coins
- ones is a werewolf
- Smith forms the belief that ‘the man with 10 coins has the job’
- Smith gets the job and has 10 coins
Smith has JTB, but we would say he doesn’t have knowledge - Pure Luck
Therefore, JTB isn’t SUFFICIENT for knowledge!
What is Disjunction introduction?
If either A or B is true, then in a statement, both a true
E.g. Cruz is a kind man or a billionaire.
Even if Cruz isn’t a billionaire, cause he’s a good bloke, the statement is true :/
What is Gettier’s second example and what does it show about JTB?
- Smith has JTB that Jones has a ford cortina.
- Smith believes that either Jones has a ford cortina or Brown (random NPC) is in Barcelona.
- However, Jones sells his car to a man in Barcelona called Brown
- The statement is technically true, but again, pure luck and not knowledge
Therefore, JTB isn’t SUFFICIENT for knowledge
After Gettier’s 2 cases, Knowledge = JTB + X
What is X?
X = No false lemmas
Lemma = intermediate premise
False lemma = false information which nonetheless, leads to the correct conclusion
E.g. Frozen clock telling the right time by luck
Therefore, if you have JTB and no false lemmas, then you must have knowledge, right……
What is the response to “no false lemmas”?
Fake Barn Country
1000 fake barns
1 real one
You see the real one and conclude that all are real
I had JTB and no false lemmas, but still, I don’t have knowledge :(
What replacement theory of ‘no false lemmas’?
Reliabilism - in order for you to have knowledge, you require evidence from a reliable source.
A reliable method is:
- reliable (provides more true beliefs)
- repeatable
Babies and Birds now have reliable sources of knowledge :)
In all previous scenarios, we didn’t have reliable evidence, so JTB still stands :)
What is the problem with reliabilism + Response?
In the fake barn scenario, you had reliable knowledge, but it was out of luck alone, that you were correct.
Response: Using one sense wasn’t enough
What is the replacement theory for reliabilism?
Infallibilism - like descartes, doubt everything, and if it can’t be doubted, it is knowledge.
All the scenarios had fallible information, so it wasn’t undoubtable.
However, with this, we would never be able to have knowledge
What is Linda Zagzebski’s theory to replace all previous definitions of knowledge? and what criteria does it entail?
Linda Zagzebski (L.Z) says that we shouldn’t waste time being certain about what we know (tryna have analytic statements for everything), we should focus our attention on what would make our quests for knowledge virtuous.
We will never truly know anything no matter what we add to JTB, because we can make a gettier case for anything including luck.
Virtue ethics = what makes an action good or worthy of merit
Virtue epistemology = What makes our quest for knowledge good? What intellectual virtues should we exercise in our pursuit of knowledge?
CRITERIA:
1. Successful
2. The means of getting the right answer (apt)
3. Sincere ( searching for the truth, and not just what we want to believe)
4. Well motivated
L.Z says we should be content with JTB + X and hope we don’t end up in a Gettier case ;)
