Epistemology (Broad Overview)

Question 1

What is epistemology?

Answer 1

The branch of philosophy concerned with the nature, sources, limitations, and validity of knowledge.

Question 2

Define ‘justified true belief’ in the context of knowledge.

Answer 2

A classic definition of knowledge as a belief that is true and for which one has justification.

Question 3

What problem did Edmund Gettier introduce in epistemology?

Answer 3

Gettier introduced examples showing that justified true belief might not always constitute knowledge, leading to challenges in defining knowledge.

Question 4

What are the primary sources of knowledge according to epistemology?

Answer 4

Empiricism, rationalism, constructivism, and intuition.

Question 5

Explain empiricism as a source of knowledge.

Answer 5

Empiricism is the view that knowledge comes primarily from sensory experience.

Question 6

What is rationalism?

Answer 6

The belief that knowledge comes from reason and innate ideas, rather than sensory experience.

Question 7

How does constructivism view knowledge?

Answer 7

Constructivism suggests that knowledge is a combination of experience and cognitive frameworks that organize it.

Question 8

What distinguishes a priori knowledge from a posteriori knowledge?

Answer 8

A priori knowledge is independent of experience, while a posteriori knowledge depends on experience.

Question 9

Give an example of propositional knowledge.

Answer 9

‘I know that Paris is the capital of France.’

Question 10

What is procedural knowledge?

Answer 10

Knowledge of how to perform a task, such as knowing how to ride a bike.

Question 11

What is experiential knowledge?

Answer 11

Knowledge gained through direct experience, like knowing what it feels like to taste chocolate.

Question 12

What is global skepticism?

Answer 12

The view that it may be impossible to know anything at all.

Question 13

How does local skepticism differ from global skepticism?

Answer 13

Local skepticism doubts specific types of knowledge, such as knowledge of the external world, rather than all knowledge.

Question 14

What is Cartesian skepticism?

Answer 14

A form of radical skepticism introduced by Descartes, doubting everything that can be doubted to reach certain knowledge.

Question 15

Summarize Descartes’ ‘Cogito, ergo sum.’

Answer 15

It means ‘I think, therefore I am,’ signifying the only certainty Descartes believed he could reach.

Question 16

What is foundationalism in epistemology?

Answer 16

The theory that certain basic beliefs are self-justifying and form the foundation for other beliefs.

Question 17

What does coherentism claim about belief justification?

Answer 17

Coherentism argues that beliefs are justified if they fit within a consistent system of mutually supporting beliefs.

Question 18

Define reliabilism in epistemology.

Answer 18

The theory that a belief is justified if it is produced by a reliable cognitive process.

Question 19

Differentiate internalism and externalism in justification.

Answer 19

Internalism requires that justification depends on factors within the believer’s awareness, while externalism allows for justification by external factors.

Question 20

What is the correspondence theory of truth?

Answer 20

The view that a statement is true if it corresponds to an actual state of affairs in reality.

Question 21

Explain the coherence theory of truth.

Answer 21

Truth is determined by the coherence or consistency of a belief with other beliefs.

Question 22

What is the pragmatic theory of truth?

Answer 22

Truth is viewed as what is useful or has practical effects, meaning beliefs are true if they work in achieving outcomes.

Question 23

What does the deflationary theory of truth propose?

Answer 23

It suggests that ‘truth’ is not a substantial property and is simply an assertion of a statement’s content.

Question 24

What is certainty in epistemology?

Answer 24

The state of having absolute, indubitable knowledge, though it is rarely achievable.

Question 25

Define fallibilism.

Answer 25

The view that all knowledge could, in principle, be mistaken or revised.

Question 26

What is epistemic relativism?

Answer 26

The belief that knowledge and truth are relative to individual perspectives or cultural contexts.

Question 27

What is virtue epistemology?

Answer 27

A focus on the intellectual virtues of the knower, like open-mindedness and intellectual humility, as key to gaining knowledge.

Question 28

What is social epistemology concerned with?

Answer 28

How social contexts influence knowledge, including issues of collective knowledge and the role of testimony.

Question 29

Explain epistemic injustice.

Answer 29

The idea that social injustices, like discrimination, can undermine knowledge by marginalizing certain groups from contributing to shared knowledge.