more from this thinker     |     more from this text


Single Idea 6597

[filed under theme 13. Knowledge Criteria / C. External Justification / 6. Contextual Justification / a. Contextualism ]

Full Idea

One rule for the justification of knowledge might be: Do not raise the level of scrutiny in the absence of a particular reason that triggers it.

Gist of Idea

A rule of justification might be: don't raise the level of scrutiny without a good reason

Source

Robert Fogelin (Walking the Tightrope of Reason [2003], Ch.4)

Book Ref

Fogelin,Robert: 'Walking the Tightrope of Reason' [OUP 2004], p.124


A Reaction

That won't decide the appropriate level of scrutiny from which to start. One of my maxims is 'don't set the bar too high', but it seems tough that one should have to justify moving it. The early scientists tried raising it, and were amazed by the results.


The 18 ideas with the same theme [defence of context as vital to knowledge claims]:

Knowing is context-sensitive because the domain of quantification varies [Lewis, by Cohen,S]
We have knowledge if alternatives are eliminated, but appropriate alternatives depend on context [Lewis, by Cohen,S]
People vary in their epistemological standards, and none of them is 'correct' [Field,H]
Our own intuitions about whether we know tend to vacillate [Cohen,S]
We shouldn't jump too quickly to a contextualist account of claims to know [Cohen,S]
The context sensitivity of knowledge derives from its justification [Cohen,S]
Contextualism is good because it allows knowledge, but bad because 'knowing' is less valued [Cohen,S]
Contextualism says sceptical arguments are true, relative to their strict context [Cohen,S]
Knowledge is context-sensitive, because justification is [Cohen,S]
Classical invariantism combines fixed truth-conditions with variable assertability standards [DeRose]
We can make contextualism more precise, by specifying the discrimination needed each time [DeRose]
In some contexts there is little more to knowledge than true belief. [DeRose]
Contextualists worry about scepticism, but they should focus on the use of 'know' in ordinary speech [DeRose]
Justification depends on the audience and one's social role [Kusch]
A rule of justification might be: don't raise the level of scrutiny without a good reason [Fogelin]
People begin to doubt whether they 'know' when the answer becomes more significant [Conee]
Contextualism needs a semantics for knowledge sentences that are partly indexical [Schiffer,S]
The indexical aspect of contextual knowledge might be hidden, or it might be in what 'know' means [Schiffer,S]