Combining Texts

Ideas for 'Metaphysics', 'Understanding' and 'Absolute Necessities'

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7 ideas

11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 1. Knowledge
The ability to teach is a mark of true knowledge [Aristotle]
     Full Idea: The ability to teach is a distinguishing mark between the knowledgeable and the ignorant man.
     From: Aristotle (Metaphysics [c.324 BCE], 0981b04)
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 2. Understanding
Unlike knowledge, you can achieve understanding through luck [Grimm]
     Full Idea: It may be that understanding is compatible with luck, in a way that knowledge is not.
     From: Stephen R. Grimm (Understanding [2011], 3)
     A reaction: [He cites Kvanvig and Prichard] If so, then we cannot say that knowledge is a lesser type of understanding. If you ask a trusted person how a mechanism works, and they have a wild guess that is luckily right, you would then understand it.
'Grasping' a structure seems to be modal, because we must anticipate its behaviour [Grimm]
     Full Idea: 'Graspng' a structure would seem to bring into play something like a modal sense or ability, not just to register how things are, but also to anticipate how certain elements of the system would behave.
     From: Stephen R. Grimm (Understanding [2011], 2)
     A reaction: In the case of the chronology of some historical events, talking of 'grasping' or 'understanding' seems wrong because the facts are static and invariant. That seems to support the present idea. But you might 'understand' a pattern if you can reproduce it.
You may have 'weak' understanding, if by luck you can answer a set of 'why questions' [Grimm]
     Full Idea: There may be a 'weak' sense of understanding, where all you need to do is to be able to answer 'why questions' successfully, where one might have come by this ability in a lucky way.
     From: Stephen R. Grimm (Understanding [2011], 3)
     A reaction: We can see this point (in Idea 19691), but the idea that one could come by true complex understanding of something by purely lucky means is a bit absurd. Surely you would get one or two why questions wrong? 100%, just by luck?
11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 6. Knowing How
Things are produced from skill if the form of them is in the mind [Aristotle]
     Full Idea: Things are produced from skill if the form of them is in the mind.
     From: Aristotle (Metaphysics [c.324 BCE], 1032a33)
     A reaction: This resembles the legal notion of 'mens rea', the conscious intention to commit the deed.
It takes skill to know causes, not experience [Aristotle]
     Full Idea: The skilled know the cause, whereas the experienced do not.
     From: Aristotle (Metaphysics [c.324 BCE], 0981a29)
Experience knows particulars, but only skill knows universals [Aristotle]
     Full Idea: Experience is the knowledge of particulars and skill that of universals.
     From: Aristotle (Metaphysics [c.324 BCE], 0981a14)