Knowledge and Doubt

Question 1

knowing how

Answer 1

knowing how to do something, having a skill or ability to do something

Question 2

knowing that

Answer 2

propositional knowledge, knowledge that a statement or fact is true

Question 3

Different types of knowledge

Answer 3

• propositional knowledge (knowing something is true)
• knowledge of ‘how to’
• personal experience (knowledge by acquaintance)

Question 4

example of propositional knowledge

Answer 4

i know glasgow is in scotland

Question 5

example of knowledge ‘how to’

Answer 5

i know how to make sweet potato chips

Question 6

example of personal experience knowledge

Answer 6

i know a lot about glasgow

Question 7

difference between true belief & knowledge

Answer 7

• a knowledge claim needs to be backed up with
  reasons
• knowledge claim is more valuable because of justification

Question 8

what 3 conditions are needed to form a viewpoint on knowledge according to the tripartite theory?

Answer 8

statements must be:

• true
• believed
• justified

Question 9

what is knowledge according to the tripartite theory?

Answer 9

Individually necessary = we must meet all of these conditions to have knowledge. Any knowledge claim that cannot do this, is not a knowledge claim

Jointly sufficient = These three conditions are all that is needed. If a propositional knowledge statement meets these three conditions, you can say that you have knowledge

Question 10

The distinction between knowing how and knowing that

Answer 10

knowing that is propositional knowledge, a statement or fact which is true whereas knowing how is knowledge on how to perform a skill or ability

Question 11

A priori

Answer 11

Truths are known to be true prior experience (or true by definition)

Question 12

rationalism

Answer 12

claiming that some knowledge of the external world can be established by correct reasoning and without the use of sense experience

Question 13

example of a priori truth

Answer 13

• all bachelors are unmarried males
• Dundee is south of Aberdeen
• Glasgow is within the Uk

Question 14

How does Leibniz use a block of veined marble to show how we acquire knowledge

Answer 14

Leibniz uses the metaphor that compares the human mind to a block of veined marble. He gives the example that a block of marble might be veined in a way that you might be able to shape a statue of Hercules from it. He uses this metaphor to suggest that we have a pre-existing potential for knowledge that just needs to be uncovered. Leibniz does not believe that experience alone is enough to explain the way that we understand the world

Question 15

A posteriori

Answer 15

knowledge justified from experience

Question 16

examples of a posteriori

Answer 16

• some bachelors are happy men

- my sister is 5ft tall

Question 17

how does locke use a blank sheet of paper to show how we acquire knowledge

Answer 17

Locke uses the metaphor of a blank piece of paper to represent the human mind before it acquires knowledge. Locke believes that humans are a blank slate with no innate ideas. Locke believes that we start from a position of no knowledge and gain knowledge gradually through experiences

Question 18

name 3 of Descartes sceptic theories

Answer 18

• Dream argument
• Deceiving God argument
• Evil genius/ malicious demon

Question 19

describe the deceiving god argument

Answer 19

• Descartes uses the deceiving god argument to cast doubt over knowledge-based on reason
• For example, god may even be deceiving him about mathematic truths
• Descartes also speculates that god is deceiving him about the existence of the entire world
• Descartes concludes that the foundations for all of his knowledge are undermined by the possibility that God might be deceiving us

Question 20

describe the senses argument

Answer 20

 Descartes’ claim that many of the beliefs he has taken to be completely reliable come
from his sense experience
 his assertion that his senses have been shown to deceive him
 his conclusion that it might be wise not to trust in them completely
 his examples of the kinds of things our senses deceive us about — things that are very
small or very far away

Question 21

describe dreaming argument

Answer 21

 Descartes’ point that the senses initially seem to be reliable for things that are very
obvious, such as the fact that he is sitting by the fire holding a piece of paper in his hands
 his belief that he sometimes thinks he is sitting by the fire when in fact he is in bed,
dreaming that he is awake
 his view that, in dreams, we can have the experience of seeing things yet these things
are not there in reality
 his suggestion that perhaps all his supposed experiences of the external world are,
similarly, a product of his mind
 his claim that there are no definitive signs by which he can distinguish wakefulness from
sleep
 his conclusion that, as he could be dreaming, he cannot trust any knowledge gained from
his sense experiences

Question 22

Describe the malicious demon argument

Answer 22

 Descartes’ conclusion that, by the end of the Method of Doubt, he can raise a doubt
about every single one of his former beliefs without exception
 his tendency to keep falling back into his old beliefs
 his adoption of the malicious demon as a device he can use to deceive himself that his
previous beliefs are actually false
 his speculation that the external world might be a complete illusion

Question 23

Describe empiricism

Answer 23

That all knowledge of the world ultimately depends on experience (locked blank sheet of paper)

Question 24

What is scepticism?

Answer 24

Sceptics doubt our ability to gain knowledge concerning our ability to satisfy the justification condition for knowledge.

They argue it is impossible to be certain about anything as we can be easily deceived by simple things (day of the week) so how do we know we are not mistaken more.