Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Knowledge, truth, and justification
- 2 The traditional analysis and the Gettier problem
- 3 Foundationalism
- 4 The coherence theory of justification
- 5 Reliabilism and virtue epistemology
- 6 Internalism, externalism, and epistemic circularity
- 7 Skepticism
- 8 The problem of the criterion
- 9 The a priori
- 10 Naturalized epistemology
- Select bibliography
- Index
Preface
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Knowledge, truth, and justification
- 2 The traditional analysis and the Gettier problem
- 3 Foundationalism
- 4 The coherence theory of justification
- 5 Reliabilism and virtue epistemology
- 6 Internalism, externalism, and epistemic circularity
- 7 Skepticism
- 8 The problem of the criterion
- 9 The a priori
- 10 Naturalized epistemology
- Select bibliography
- Index
Summary
The theory of knowledge, or epistemology, is one of the main areas of philosophy. Some of the problems are as old as Plato, yet they remain alive and interesting today. This book is intended to introduce the reader to some of the main problems in epistemology and to some proposed solutions. It is primarily intended for students taking their first course in the theory of knowledge, but it should also be useful to the generally educated reader interested in learning something about epistemology. I do not assume that the reader has an extensive background in philosophy.
In writing an introductory text, one must balance many things. I have sought to strike a balance between impartial presentation and advocacy. In general, I have tried to be fair and neutral between competing positions, yet in some places I defend some views. I have also sought to hit the mean between breadth and depth of coverage. I have not tried to cover every important or recent position or to cover every development within the views I discuss. I have tried to focus with clarity on some main features of a few major positions. I hope this approach will be helpful to the reader seeking an introduction to epistemology. I have tried to hit the mean, but as Aristotle says, the mean rests with perception. I apologize for my blindspots.
In chapter 1, I distinguish between some senses of “knows” and note that our primary focus will be on propositional knowledge.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- An Introduction to the Theory of Knowledge , pp. ix - xPublisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2007