Theories of truth essay

Question 1

Introduction, argument for Core-T

Answer 1

1) If it is impossible to reference truth without some level of evaluating its correspondence to reality, then a theory of truth which focuses on correspondence to reality is correct

2) It is impossible to reference truth without some level of evaluating its correspondence to reality

3) Correspondence theory focuses on correspondence to reality

4) Thus, correspondence theory is the correct theory of truth

Question 2

Important information

Answer 2

• Correspondence theory holds that truth is representativeness (or correspondence) to reality, or that truth represents the facts.
• Aside from the correspondence theory, truth has been alternatively classified by the coherence, pragmatic, and deflationary theories of truth.
• The coherence theory views truth as the end goal of inquiry, and that at the end of inquiry we obtain a system of beliefs which fit (cohere) together. As such the coherence theory classifies truth as a cohering relation between beliefs in a belief set.
• The pragmatic theory focuses on the actions (output) that emerge from beliefs and classifies truth as the practical utility of a belief, since true beliefs are practically useful and thus truth represents a sort of success of our beliefs.
• Deflationists hold that asserting a claim is the same as asserting said claim “is true”, rendering truth as merely a logical device without any substantive property.

Question 3

Defence of the factual strength of my argument

Answer 3

• To argue the factual strengths of my premises, I will need to defend my first and second premises (with my third being true by definition).
• I believe that no matter how truth is classified, it is impossible to apply the concept without some level of evaluation against reality. To say that claim ‘P’ is true inherently requires some form of justification which ultimately will trace back to some form of evaluation of our reality. Transitioning from a belief to a true belief, requires justification in some capacity, which would be impossible if there were not a physical world and/or a conceptual reality around us and I believe all other theories of truth involve this concept in some capacity.
• In coherence theory, to avoid major criticisms it is needed to indicate that a coherent belief system must confront reality in some way, i.e., that the beliefs must cohere with each other but must also be responsive to reality, which is impossible to achieve without checking said belief system against reality in some capacity.
• In the pragmatic theory, the only way to know if a belief is practically useful (thus true by the theory) is to evaluate its usefulness in reality.
• In the deflationary theory, one cannot utter an assertoric sentence ‘P’, nor say that ‘P’ “is true” without good reason to do so, so although truth can be classified in this theory as a logical device, it would be impossible to use correctly without some form of justification for ‘P’.
• Thus, if it is impossible to reference “truth”, or that a claim “is true” without relying on some form of evaluation against (i.e., correspondence to) reality then it seems to logically follow that at its core, truth is correspondence to reality.

Question 4

Counterargument

Answer 4

• One could argue that it actually is possible to reference truth, or know that something is true, without any evaluation against reality, thus defeating my second premise.
• For example, a foundationalist may argue that foundational (or self-justifying) beliefs which require no justification are regarded as true without needing to be evaluated against reality. Similarly, one could argue that certain a-priori beliefs (such as logical forms) do not need to be evaluated against reality since they are considered to be known independently of empirical investigation.
• I would argue that in these cases (as well as any other abstract domains, such as morality, comic, aesthetics, etc.), any beliefs held will ultimately require some kind of justification through reality. Beliefs held about non-physical concepts or abstract domains still rely on a foundation of knowledge established through navigating reality in order to be regarded as true.