reason as a source of knowledge

Question 1

empiricism

Answer 1

experience and evidence from the senses provide us with most if not all of our knowledge

Question 2

rationalism

Answer 2

reason by itself is a source of knowledge, in this theory it should be possible to work out substantial truths about the world using reason alone.

Question 3

a priori knowledge

Answer 3

justification independent of experience

Question 4

a posteriori knowledge

Answer 4

justification based on experience

Question 5

innatism

Answer 5

the claim that we are born with knowledge - knowledge is revealed through reason

Question 6

premise argument for platos slave boy

Answer 6

P1) the enslaved boy has no prior knowledge of geometry
P2) socrates only asks questions - he does not teach the boy about squares
P3) After the questioning the enslaved boy can grasp an eternal truth about geometry
P4) this eternal truth was not derived from the boys prior experience nor from socrates
C) this eternal truth must have existed innately in the boy to begin with.

Question 7

criticism of platos slave boy

Answer 7

perhaps the ensalved boy is simply using reason to work out what must be the case given certain features of lines and shapes, it is not necessary to posit innate knowledge to explain how the boy can reason his way to the discovery of a geometric truth

Question 8

premise form of Leibniz necessity of truth

Answer 8

P1 the senses only reveal instances of general truths
p2 the senses cannot reveal the necessity of a general truth
p3 our minds can see the necessity of some general truths
c Our ability to see the necessity of general truths is not derived from the senses but is based on innate principles