What is Skepticism?

A short, unauthoritative guide to not knowing anything.

Transcript

1. What is Skepticism? A REALLY SHORT, UNAUTHORITATIVE GUIDE TO NOT KNOWING ANYTHING
2. Historical Picture of Skepticism Socrates “About myself I knew that I know nothing” Pyrrho “about each single thing that it no more is than is not or both is and is not or neither is nor is not” Kant “Experience without theory is blind, but theory without experience is mere intellectual play.”
3. Pyrrho of Elis  Lived around 300 BCE  Pyrrhonism Western Philosophy’s first formalized approach to Skepticism  Acatalepsia withhold judgement on truth  There’s always an alternative explanation. Not this Kind of Pyro
4. “ ” Neither our sense-perceptions nor our theories, tell us the truth or lie; so we certainly should not rely on them. Rather, we should be without views, uninclined toward this side or that, and unwavering in our refusal to choose, saying about every single one that it no more is than it is not or it both is and is not or it neither is nor is not. SOMETHING PYRRHO OF ELIS MAY HAVE SAID Audio from the podcast: Philosophize This! Episode 13 – The Hellenistic Age Pt. 4 http://philosophizethis.org/hellenistic-age-3-skepticism/
5. “ ” Ancient debates address questions that today we associate with epistemology and philosophy of language, as well as with theory of action, rather than specifically with the contemporary topic of skepticism. They focus on the nature of belief, the way in which belief figures in our mental lives, and the relationship of belief to speech and action. STANFORD ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PHILOSOPHY: ANCIENT SKEPTICISM HTTPS://PLATO.STANFORD.EDU/ENTRIES/SKEPTICISM-ANCIENT/
6. Comparison to Modern Skepticism Ancient Skepticism  Belief  Suspension of Judgement  Criterion of Truth  Appearances  Investigation Modern Skepticism  Knowledge  Certainty  Justified Belief  Doubt
7. Knowledge as Justified True Belief Truth • One can only know things that are true. • Just because something is true, doesn’t mean that anyone knows it is true. • It’s metaphysical, not epistemological. Truth is a matter of how things are, not how they can be shown to be. Belief You can only know what you believe. You can know without believing. • You’re asked “What’s the capital city of Ohio?” on a test where you’re penalized for wrong answers. • You know that Columbus is the capital of Ohio — which is true. • You aren’t confident in your answer — you don’t believe. • You leave the question blank because, while you are know, you don’t believe. Justified • You can believe true things for the wrong reason • What is true is what can be shown • Repeatable, Demonstrable, Empirical
8. Practical Example Assent • There is an odd number of Jelly Beans • We live in the real world. • There is a god. Descent • There is an even number of Jelly Beans. • We live in the Matrix. • There is no god. Skeptic • I don’t know. • I don’t know. • I don’t know.
9. Philosophical Skepticism We should not believe things until there is sufficient evidence for them. A mechanism by which we can establish the truth of claims to the best of our ability. Scientific Skepticism https://youtu.be/m_tgO-xXrwI?t=1866