John Locke
The Empiricist Theory of Knowledge
Locke believed
that we have intuitive knowledge of our own existence and that the existence of God can be demonstrated by reason. Apart from knowledge of self, we derive knowledge from inductive generalizations
Knowledge for Locke
intuitive
demonstrative
sensitive knowledge-taking in a sensation and then looking back on it in memory
probability-type of induction, we don't have certainty but we can know through reason but things still change
According to Locke, the mind at birth is a
tabula rasa, a blank state--all knowledge begins with sensory experience
Rene Descartes
Self becomes center of authority instead of tradition. He has discovered much of what he has been taught has been false so doubts everything he has previously learned and began to construct knowledge
Descartes quest
He will suppose an evil genius that has directed his entire effort to misleading him. All process of knowledge controlled by this deceiver.
He has so many doubts, he will go forward until he knows something certain or know for certain that nothing is cert
Descartes' conclusion
During this process he is open to the fact that there is deceiver, God or no God, Descartes exists and it is not dependent on his existence. Only self is certain.
This is the one certainty that one can come up with. No matter how much you doubt, you still
Epistemology:
the study/theory of knowledge, the investigation of what distinguishes justified belief from opinion. The philosophical study of knowledge through nature, origin, validity and beliefs.
Empriicism
the school of philosophy that asserts that the source of all knowldge
propositional knowledge
knowledge of a proposition, or knowing that something is the case
rationalists
believe that through unaided reason we can come to know what the world is like
empiricists
contend that our knowledge of the empirical world comes from only sense experience
empiricists believe knowledege
is entirely a posteriori
Rationalism:
certain truths are knowable a priori, through reflection about those truths. Reflection alone without empirical observation can yield knowledge of reality.
-Descartes
Certain truths are knowable a priori, through reflection about those truths. That is, re
A priori
knowledge that is not based on sense but is innate or known by simply meaning of words or definitions is a priori. Knowledge is already innate in mind, intuitive or conceptual.
Hume limited the term to "relations
of ideas," referring to analytic truths an
Innate ideas-
The theory appearing in Descartes that
states that all humans are born with
certain knowledge.
Descartes believes experience is unreliable source, but knowledge requires certainty . He finds it impossible to doubt he exists--i think therefore i am
Propositional knowledge
is knowing that something is the case, knowledge of a proposition
skepticism
the view that we cannot or do not have knowledge
--descartes holds this view
Apology,
Plato recounts the trial of Socrates, accused of corrupting the youth of Athens and not believing in the gods. Socrates defends himself, declaring that he is guilty only of asking probing questions of men who claim to be wise, thus exposing their ignoranc
Socrate's mission
search for wisdom
Socrates' method
searching for truth
Socrates' Accusations
- "Socrates is an evil doer, and a curious person, who searches into things under the earth and in heaven, and he makes the worse appear the better cause; and he teaches the aforesaid doctrines to others."
He is accused of being a teacher that takes money
Socrates' Defense
- " seventy years of age, first time that I have appeared in a court of law...let the judge decide justly and the speaker speak truly."
- "my opponents are of two kinds - one recent, the other ancient" [the ancient are harder because
the rumors have been
John Locke-The Quest for Truth
Born 1632-1704
Of Enthusiasm:
Three Grounds of Assent:
Reason-general and natural revelation, by very nature of human beings we are able to be rational creatures and know things
Revelation-this comes from God, God communicating to mankind in some particular way
Enthusiasm
True Prophet-
God when makes the prophet, does not unmake the man, when he illuminates the mind with the supernatural light, he does not extinguish that which is natural...reason must be our last judge and guide in every thing
Enthusiasm
is above the common and natural ways of knowledge, it flatters many man's laziness, ignorance, and vanity, that when once they are got into this way of immediate revelation, of illumination without search, and of certainty without proof
Locke's question
If you put reason aside how do you know revelation is from God? How would you know whether it is from Satan or from God if you remove reason?
Locke's claim that the love of truth entails "not entertaining any proposition with greater assurance
than the pr
Locke's claim: "not entertaining any proposition with greater assurance than the proofs it is built upon will warrant
Humility in holding proposition to make sure you have enough evidence and that it is a reasonable proposition to hold onto. You peruse evidence that explains proposition. Unreasonable to hold to proposition based on feelings and you don't care about the e
priori argument
does not depend on that, it rests on the premises that can be known to be true independently of experience of the world: one need only clearly conceive
(ontological)
posteriori argument
the later", knowledge from experience. based on premises that can be known only by means of experience of the world
(cosmological and teleological)
Descarte
Rationalism (innate ideal, a priori)
John Locke
Empiricism, 1632-1704, his purpose was to inquire the certainty of knowledge. read descartes and saw weakness and strengths, "i shall endeavor to show what knowledge is"--Sense and Reflection
locke's method
make inquiry into the nature and grounds of faith or opinion
argument form universal consent
whatsoever is, is (law of identity)
it is impossible for the same thing to be and not to be (law of non-contradiction)
*Locke argues that these do not have universal consent.
problem for locke's argument
it is evident, that all children and idiots have not the least apprehension of thought of them...no proposition can be said to be in the mind which it never yet knew, which it was never yet conscious of (if they are innate) children cannot be ignorant of
where do ideas come from according to locke
every man being conscious to himself that he thinks and that which his mind is applied about whilst thinking being the ideas that are there, it is past doubt that men have in their minds several ideas
SENSE AND REFLECTION
two fountains of knowledge according to Locke
Sensation-sensing the external world from experience, convey into the mind what produces there those perceptions
Reflection-the perception of the operations of our own mind within us, as it is employed about the ideas it has got internal workings of the m
Locke's idea of quality
is the power to produce any idea in our mind
Primary qualities
inseparable from the body (every particle of matter) may be divisible, may be observed to produce simple ideas in us
-example: apple-it's weight, taking up space
Secondary qualities
are not in the object themselves, but the powers to produce various sensations in us by their primary qualities
intuitive knowledge
for if we reflect on our own ways of thinking we find that sometimes the mind perceives the agreement or disagreement of two ideas immediately by themselves, without the intervention of any other: and this is think we may call intuitive knowledge.
demonstrative knoweldge
type that does take great pains and attention and has to be demonstrated, but once it's proven then it can come immediate and intuitively know that it is for certain
two degrees of knowledge
intuitive and demonstrative; beyond this is induction, probability, faith and opinion
sensitive knowledge
distinction between memory and something actually taking place and coming into our minds by our senses (actual experience is more lively and real)
Probablity according to Locke
As demonstration is the showing the
agreement or disagreement of two ideas,
by the intervention of one or more proofs,
which have a constant, immutable, and
visible connexion one with another; so
probability is nothing but the appearance
of such an agree
hume
the utmost effort of human reason is to reduce the principles, productive of natural phenomena to a greater simplicity and to resolve the many particular effects into a few general causes, by means of reasonings from analogy, experience and observation
David Hume
all laws of nature are known by experience, "that causes and effects are discoverable, not by reason, but by experience"
-cause and effect
relations of ideas
kind are the sciences of geometry, algebra and arithmetic, which is either intuitively or demonstratively certain
matters of fact
second objects of human reason, not ascertained in the same manner, nor is our evidence of their truth, however great, of a like nature with the foregoing--arises from experience
universal skepticism
holds that we cannot know anything at all, whereas local, or particular, skepticism holds that there are important realms in which we are ignorant
(Hume regarding Metaphysics)
proposition
a sentence or statement that must either be true or false. Every statement that states how the world is, is a proposition
contingent
a proposition is contingent if its denial is logically possible. it's denial is not contradictory. a being is contingent if it is not logically necessary
necessary truth
a proposition that cannot be false, such as analytic proposition (for example, all bachelors are male")
contradiction
when one statement denies another, both of which cannot be true; for example "God exists" and "God does not exist
David Hum (1711-1776)
Empiricist and Skeptic
Relations of ideas by hume
All objects of human reason or enquiry may be naturally divided into two kinds:
1. Relations of ideas=sciences of geometry, algebra, and arithmetic (intuitive/demonstrative knowledge) (analytic truth)
2. Matters of Fact=second object of human reason, the
Hume
for all inferences from experience, the future will resemble the past.it is more psychological that we make these inferences. not by reason but by CUSTOM or habit that we know cause and effects, we see one follow the other.
custom
habit-one follows the other, we don't understand causality or form of nature by reason just through experience and custom or habit--makes our experience useful and pragmatic.
John Hospers
makes argument AGAINST skepticism--burden of proof on skeptic, need reasons that sun won't rise tomorrow. puts burden on skeptic who says you can't have knowledge of these particular things
John Hospers
Against Skepticism, father of liberaterian party
Hospers Beliefs
Three different types of knows
1. Acquaintance="do you know Lady Gaga?" have you met her
2. Knowing "how"="do you know how to surf?" it is similar to know how and has to do with ability. one knows how to surf just incase they have the ability to surf
3. p
propositional sense (Hospers)
1. p must be true;
2.you must believe that p is true
3. and you must have evidence/reason for p (this is to avoid the "lucky guess")
propositional sense (Hospers)
in other words, to have knowledge of the proposition, p must be true (objectively) and that person must believe p (subjectively) and that person must have evidence and/ or reason for p (to avoid the "lucky guess")
this is referred to as the justified true
weak sense of knowledge (Hospers)
these three conditions of knowledge satisfy the weak sense. if these three condiitons are met, then one is said to have justified true belief--i.e. knowledge in the weak sense
skeptic refutes hospers
just because he is mistaken about it doesn't mean he doesn't have knowledge, just because have the possibility to be wrong doesn't mean he doesn't have knowledge. Don't have to embrace skepticism because you might be wrong
it is in the weak sense that we use the word know in daily life as when i say i know i have a piece of chalk and when i let it go it will fall
i have excellent reason and evidence to believe all these things, and yet there are events that could occurs which would cast doubt on the beliefs.
Strong sense-skeptic view
1. the person believes p
2. the person has ABSOLUTELY CONCLUSIVE EVIDENCE for p
3. p is true
According to hospers
the skeptic says that we have knowledge only if we know for certain "the strong sense." he uses the distinction between the weak sense and the strong sense to argue against skepticism. puts burden of truth on the skeptic because you ask what reasons do yo
Theories of truth
Cognitive Realism/Correspondence theory of truth: objective criteria or standard in which you can test to know whether something is true or not
Cognitive Anti-Realism/Relativism: think you can't know things
cognitive realism
mind independent facts or reality, things are what they are
-Pragmatism (William james)
*Relativism
cognitive anti-reality
no mind independent facts, everything that is is because you are seeing it that way.
-correspondence theory of truth (Willard endorses and James rejects)
interview one person and ask them
1. what is truth?
2. and can we do without it?