Single Idea 19559

[catalogued under 13. Knowledge Criteria / D. Scepticism / 6. Scepticism Critique]

Full Idea

Contextualism concedes that there is some truth to skepticism, but contains the damage by holding that skeptical claims are true only relative to atypically strict contexts.

Gist of Idea

Contextualists slightly concede scepticism, but only in extremely strict contexts

Source

Stewart Cohen (Contextualism Defended (and reply) [2005], 1)

Book Reference

'Contemporary Debates in Epistemology (2nd ed)', ed/tr. Steup/Turri/Sosa [Wiley Blackwell 2014], p.70


A Reaction

My attitude to scepticism is that everything we ever affirm should have a footnote saying '...but you never know...', and it should then be ignored. In the strictest context everything is doubted simultaneously (including language), and that is paralysis.