Knowledge Tree
skepticism
Also known as: Skeptics, skeptical
Facts (67)
Sources
Epistemology - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy plato.stanford.edu Dec 14, 2005 10 facts
claimSkepticism about knowledge of the past arises because memorial seemings do not guarantee that the past is as one remembers it, as it is logically possible for the world to have come into existence recently with false memories and apparent fossils.
claimThe skeptical conclusion that one does not know they have hands is reached by applying the closure principle to the BIV argument, where the antecedent of the closure principle is considered false because the individual cannot know they are not a brain-in-a-vat.
claimContextualism is a philosophical position intended as a closure-preserving response to skepticism, specifically regarding the Brain in a Vat (BIV) argument.
procedureSkeptics use a two-step argument to challenge knowledge: first, they identify a proposition the subject admits they do not know; second, they argue that because the subject does not know that second proposition, they cannot know the first proposition.
claimThe 'semantic ascent' element of contextualism posits that a satisfactory response to skepticism and the Brain in a Vat (BIV) argument requires distinguishing between high-standards and low-standards meanings of 'knowledge'.
claimSkeptics argue that for any skeptical hypothesis, a person cannot know that the hypothesis is false.
claimBoth contextualism and the ambiguity response share the 'semantic ascent' element, which requires distinguishing between various meanings of the word 'know' to provide a satisfactory response to skepticism.
perspectiveSkeptics about apriority claim that all knowledge of mathematics, geometry, logic, and conceptual truths is empirical rather than a priori.
perspectiveSkeptics argue that the limits of human knowledge are narrower than people typically believe, meaning people fail to know many things they think they know.
claimBecause the evidence available to a normal person and a brain-in-a-vat is identical, skeptics argue that a person cannot know they are not a brain-in-a-vat.
Naturalized Epistemology - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy plato.stanford.edu Jul 5, 2001 8 facts
claimTraditionalists in epistemology can sensibly proceed without scientific input if their goal is to refute arguments for skepticism, as refuting arguments for the denial of knowledge does not necessarily demonstrate that knowledge exists.
claimArguments for skepticism often rely on the premise that evidence supports beliefs only if those beliefs are strictly deducible from that evidence.
referenceRichard Fumerton published "Metaepistemology and Skepticism" in 1995 through Rowman and Littlefield, examining the nature of metaepistemology and skeptical arguments.
claimContemporary epistemologists largely view the goal of their field as defining what knowledge is, rather than attempting to refute skepticism, because they already operate under the assumption that the skeptic is wrong.
perspectiveW.V.O. Quine concludes that the traditional effort to respond to skepticism is a failure and suggests that the failure of foundationalism implies that epistemology is impossible.
claimThe 'Moorean' assumption is best interpreted as a stance against highly abstract philosophical arguments for skepticism, rather than a claim that specific knowledge cannot be overturned by empirical information.
claimThe view that we already know the skeptic is wrong and need not refute them is similar to views endorsed by G. E. Moore.
claimTraditional epistemologists often attempt to refute arguments for skepticism without utilizing information derived from the sciences.
Epistemology | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy iep.utm.edu 8 facts
claimSkepticism is the philosophical view that humans do not know anything, cannot know anything, or do not know as much as they believe.
claimSkepticism is the philosophical view that humans do not or cannot know anything at all.
claimRené Descartes presents an argument for skepticism in the first of his Meditations, which he attempts to refute in later Meditations.
claimRené Descartes' argument for skepticism posits that human senses can be inaccurate, citing the possibility of mistaking dreams for waking experiences or being systematically deceived by an evil demon.
referenceRene Descartes published 'Meditations on First Philosophy' in 1641, in which he presents an infallibilist version of foundationalism and attempts to refute skepticism.
claimDavid Hume argues that even if human perceptions are accurate, skepticism remains because humans perceive only a small part of the universe at any moment, yet claim knowledge of the world beyond current perceptions.
perspectiveSkepticism requires support by an argument to be considered an important philosophical position, rather than just a challenge to knowledge claims.
claimSkeptics may argue that beliefs are either not true or not justified, with the argument that beliefs are not justified being more common than the argument that they are not true.
Epistemology - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 8 facts
claimRené Descartes (1596–1650) aimed to find absolutely certain knowledge by encountering truths that cannot be doubted, inspired by skepticism.
claimJuan Comesaña and Manuel Comesaña authored the 2022 book 'Skepticism: The Basics', published by Routledge.
claimFallibilism is a philosophical response to skepticism that agrees with skeptics that absolute certainty is impossible, but rejects the assumption that knowledge requires absolute certainty, thereby concluding that fallible knowledge exists.
claimThe school of skepticism questions the human ability to attain knowledge.
claimJuan Comesaña and Peter Klein authored the entry 'Skepticism' for The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, published by the Metaphysics Research Lab at Stanford University in 2024.
claimThe school of Ajñana, emerging in the 6th century BCE, developed a radical skepticism that questioned the possibility and usefulness of knowledge.
referenceMichael McKinsey authored the entry 'Skepticism and Content Externalism' in The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, published by the Metaphysics Research Lab at Stanford University in 2018.
referencePeter D. Klein authored the chapter 'Contemporary Responses to Agrippa's Trilemma' in 'The Oxford Handbook of Skepticism', published by Oxford University Press in 2011.
Virtue Epistemology | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy iep.utm.edu 7 facts
claimAccording to one variety of skepticism, humans do not and cannot have any non-question-begging reasons for thinking that any beliefs about the external world are true, because such reasons inevitably depend for their force on the very beliefs in question.
claimJohn Greco's response to skepticism allows for knowledge of the external world even in cases where a person lacks cogent or non-question-begging reasons for believing that the external world exists.
claimErnest Sosa and John Greco have argued against internalism and advocated for externalism as the primary method to resolve skepticism.
claimVirtue epistemology addresses a wide range of philosophical issues, including the Gettier problem, the internalism/externalism debate, and skepticism.
claimJohn Greco argues that the skeptic's reasoning presupposes a mistaken view of the relation between knowledge and epistemic grounds, specifically assuming that to know a claim, one must possess grounds or reasons that provide a cogent reason for thinking the claim is true via logical or quasi-logical principles.
claimJohn Greco's requirements for knowledge are viewed by internalists as a capitulation to skepticism rather than a victory over it.
claimJohn Greco argues against skepticism about the external world by claiming that if a person possesses a reliable disposition to reason from the appearance of an external world to its existence, then knowledge of the external world is possible for that person.
Understanding epistemology and its key approaches in research cefcambodia.com Jan 21, 2023 6 facts
claimThe self-undermining argument against skepticism posits that if skeptics claim to know that nothing can be known, they contradict their own premise by claiming to know that specific fact.
claimSkepticism is a philosophical view that human beings lack knowledge about the external world, the past, and other minds beyond the contents of their own minds, and that humans do not know as much as they think they do.
formulaCarter and Littlejohn (2021) formalized George Edward Moore's response to skepticism as a logical argument: (1) Here are two hands; (2) If hands exist, then there is an external world; (3) Therefore, there is an external world.
claimNoah Lemos (2007) formulated several skeptical arguments to demonstrate that humans do not or cannot have knowledge about the external world.
claimGeorge Edward Moore, a 20th-century common-sense philosopher, argued that humans know many things they think they know and that the skeptical conclusion of universal ignorance is mistaken.
referenceKlein, P. D. (2010) discusses skepticism in the entry 'Epistemology from A to Z' within 'A Companion to Epistemology'.
What Is Epistemology? Pt. 3: The Nature of Justification and Belief philosimplicity.com Oct 23, 2017 5 facts
claimInfinitism implies skepticism because if human cognition cannot comprehend infinite reasoning, then complete justified beliefs cannot exist.
claimFallibilism and skepticism in epistemology focus on the certainty of belief.
claimRené Descartes' exercise in knowledge skepticism was intended to rediscover foundational beliefs.
accountRené Descartes used skepticism as a mental exercise in his work 'Meditations' to rid himself of assumptions by pretending they do not exist, allowing him to reason back to his initial assumptions to test their validity.
claimSkepticism is the epistemological position that denies all justifications any validity, asserting that nothing can be proven.
Social Epistemology – Introduction to Philosophy - Rebus Press press.rebus.community 4 facts
claimThe skeptical argument regarding peer disagreement suggests that if an individual encounters a peer who is equally fair-minded, intelligent, and acquainted with the relevant arguments, the individual has a reason to abandon or weaken their own belief.
perspectiveConciliationism regarding peer disagreement has potential skeptical consequences because many central beliefs, such as political, religious, scientific, or philosophical views, are subject to disagreement from peers or experts.
claimOne objection to the skeptical argument regarding peer disagreement is that true epistemic peers—individuals who are known to be just as likely to be right as oneself—are rare, potentially limiting the scope of the skeptical conclusion.
claimThe primary argument for non-reductionism is that reductionism cannot avoid skepticism, specifically through the Non-Evidentialist Epistemology of Others (NEEO) or the Inductive Challenge to Others (ICO).
Epistemology - Belief, Justification, Rationality | Britannica britannica.com Mar 13, 2026 3 facts
claimSkepticism challenges the claim that human beings possess or can acquire knowledge.
formulaThe definition of knowledge accepted by both skeptics and non-skeptics implies two conditions: (1) if a person knows a proposition p, then p must be true, and (2) if a person knows a proposition p, then it is logically impossible for that person to be mistaken.
claimSkepticism is often born from the observation that philosophical argumentation appears indecisive, with every argument having a counterargument and every position having a counterposition.
Epistemology of Testimony | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy iep.utm.edu 2 facts
perspectiveTestimonial liberals argue that a subject (S) is entitled to believe reports from others, such as aliens, without prior evidence of sincerity, and that being too skeptical of reports without positive reasons to doubt them is a vice.
claimTyler Burge argues that we may ignore possible worlds where testifiers' truth-seeking faculties are not functioning properly because they are not relevant alternatives, similar to how non-skeptics ignore brain-in-a-vat scenarios.
Social Epistemology - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy plato.stanford.edu Feb 26, 2001 2 facts
claimCoady argues that denying anti-reductionism leads to skepticism because audiences typically lack the evidence required to confirm the reliability of the speakers they encounter.
referenceHilary Kornblith published 'Is philosophical knowledge possible?' in the 2013 book 'Disagreement and skepticism', edited by D. Machuca.
Rationalism Vs. Empiricism 101: Which One is Right? - TheCollector thecollector.com Nov 9, 2023 1 fact
claimCarneades and Sextus Empiricus characterized ancient empiricism through skepticism, specifically by attempting to challenge the rationalist foundation of mathematical and metaphysical statements.
The Hard Problem of Consciousness | Springer Nature Link link.springer.com 1 fact
claimTo eliminate skepticism and the threat of solipsism, one must adopt a non-representational epistemology, which requires a non-dualist ontological framework.
Epistemology grokipedia.com 1 fact
claimG. E. Moore countered skepticism in 'Proof of the External World' by holding up his hands as evidence, asserting that if such known facts exist, then an external world exists, prioritizing everyday certainties over abstract doubt.
Virtue Epistemology - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy plato.stanford.edu Jul 9, 1999 1 fact
referenceLauren Olin and John M. Doris examined the intersection of virtue epistemology, cognition, and skepticism in their 2014 paper 'Vicious minds: Virtue epistemology, cognition, and skepticism'.