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PHIL 3140

Epistemology

0.5 credit · Undergraduate

Fundamental issues concerning the relation between evidence, rationality, and knowledge. Topics may include: skepticism, the nature of belief, the structure of justification, the relative contributions of reason and sense experience to knowledge, innate knowledge, the problem of induction, and the knowledge of other minds.

2017

Topics

  • The standard view & Varieties of knowledge; Feldman, Ch.
  • The Gettier problem; the Feldman, Ch. 3
  • The raft vs. the pyramid; Lehrer
  • Externalist theories of The causal theory of Feldman, Ch. 5
  • Truth-tracking theory; proper Nozick; Plantinga
  • Contextualism—substantive & Annis
  • The challenge of Varieties of philosophical Feldman, Ch. 6
  • Skepticism about induction Feldman, Ch. 7
  • Naturalist & experimentalist Rationalism & the standard Feldman, Ch. 8

Readings

  • Feldman, R. (2003). Epistemology (Prentice-Hall foundations of philosophy series). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall The following supplementary readings are contained in the PHIL 3140 coursepack, also available
  • for purchase at the Bookstore: Annis, D. (1978). A contextualist theory of epistemic justification. American Philosophical Quarterly 15 Ayer, A.J. (1956). Excerpt from The problem of knowledge. Penguin Books
  • Boghossian, P. (2006). Excerpt from Fear of knowledge. Oxford University Press BonJour [1], L. (1978). Can empirical knowledge have a foundation? American Philosophical Quarterly 15
  • BonJour [2], L. (2000). Excerpt from In defense of pure reason. Cambridge University Press Chisholm, R. (1977). Excerpt from Theory of knowledge. Prentice-Hall
  • Clark, M. (1963). Knowledge and grounds: A comment on Mr. Gettier’s paper. Analysis 24 Cohen, L. J. (1983). Can human irrationality be experimentally demonstrated? Behavioral and Brain
  • Sciences 6 Descartes, R. ([1640] 1988). First meditation. Descartes, Selected philosophical writings, trans. J. Cottingham et al. Cambridge University Press
  • Gettier, E. (1963). Is justified true belief knowledge? Analysis 23 2

Prerequisites & course information

Precludes additional credit for PHIL 2300. Prerequisite(s): 0.5 credit in philosophy and third-year standing in a philosophy program or permission of the department.

Sources