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Single Idea 19681

[from 'Evidence' by Timothy McGrew, in 13. Knowledge Criteria / B. Internal Justification / 3. Evidentialism / a. Evidence ]

Full Idea

Taking evidence as propositional may trade one problem for another. If the bloodstain isn't evidence, but 'this is a bloodstain' is evidence, then what serves as evidence for the belief about the bloodstain? Is there an infinite regress?

Gist of Idea

If all evidence is propositional, what is the evidence for the proposition? Do we face a regress?

Source

Timothy McGrew (Evidence [2011], 'Prop..')

Book Reference

'Routledge Companion to Epistemology', ed/tr. Bernecker,S/Pritchard,D [Routledge 2014], p.60


A Reaction

[compressed] I quite like evidence being propositional, but then find this. I'll retreat to my beloved coherence. I do not endorse Sellars's 'only a belief can justify a belief', because raw experience has to be part of what is coherent.

Related Idea

Idea 19680 Maybe all evidence consists of beliefs, rather than of facts [McGrew]