Combining Texts

Ideas for 'Parmenides', 'Knowledge by Agreement' and 'Causal Powers'

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3 ideas

11. Knowledge Aims / A. Knowledge / 4. Belief / a. Beliefs
We can have knowledge without belief, if others credit us with knowledge [Kusch]
     Full Idea: We can have knowledge that p without believing that p. It is enough that others credit us with the knowledge.
     From: Martin Kusch (Knowledge by Agreement [2002], Ch. 5)
     A reaction: [He is discussing Welbourne 1993] This is an extreme of the communitarian view.
11. Knowledge Aims / B. Certain Knowledge / 2. Common Sense Certainty
It is silly to say that direct experience must be justified, either by reason, or by more experience [Harré/Madden]
     Full Idea: It would be silly to suggest that what is a matter of experience must be justified by reason, and it makes no sense to say that what we are insisting upon as a matter of direct experience must itself be established by experience.
     From: Harré,R./Madden,E.H. (Causal Powers [1975], 3.II)
     A reaction: The first half is now known as the 'Moorean' view (Idea 6349). It does make sense, when faced with a weird experience, to assess and establish it by means of a combination of reason and other experiences. It's called 'coherence'!
11. Knowledge Aims / C. Knowing Reality / 4. Solipsism
Methodological Solipsism assumes all ideas could be derived from one mind [Kusch]
     Full Idea: 'Methodological solipsism' says merely that everyone can conceive of themselves as the only subject. Everyone can construct all referents of their thought and talk out of complexes of their very own experience.
     From: Martin Kusch (Knowledge by Agreement [2002], Ch.19)
     A reaction: The possibility of this can be denied (e.g. by Putnam 1983, dating back to Wittgenstein). I too would doubt it, though finding a good argument seems a forlorn hope.