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Did G.E Moore satisfactorily prove the existence of the external world? Justify your answer.
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Knowledge, Self and RealityDid G.E Moore satisfactorily prove the existence of the external world? Justify your answer.
It is true that our perceptions and senses are not always infallible – we are sometimes prone
to hallucinations and our dreams may sometimes feel like real life 1. It is from this there
exists the sceptic’s position, suggesting that there is nothing that allows us to prove the
existence of the external world with absolute certainty. British philosopher G.E Moore seeks
to discredit scepticism through what he supposes as, proof of the external world. Moore’s
argument has been popularly criticised for its naivety. However, this essay will seek to
highlight that although Moore’s argument does not necessarily prove the existence of the
external world with certainty, it is indeed satisfying enough to constitute as a successful
response to radical scepticism. It will explore the futility of Moore’s argument and how, in
its simplistic nature, it unmasks the also ineffectiveness of the sceptic’s 2 and will conclude
that although Moore’s premises cannot ever be proved, they highlight the importance of
common sense and empiricism as foundational tools of knowledge.
Moore’s argument can be laid out as follows:
(P1): If I know that I have two hands, then there is an external world.
(P2): I know that I have two hands.
(C): Therefore, there is an external world.3
From this, Moore sets out the three conditions which he believes an argument must satisfy
in order to be a genuine proof. These conditions are as follows:
(1) The conclusion must be distinct from the premises
(2) The premises must be known to be true
(3) The argument must be valid4
In order for Moore’s argument be considered valid proof, it must align with his criterion,
and it can be observed that his argument indeed meets his first condition, as the conclusion
is very much distinct from the premises. However, issues begin to arise when assessing how
successfully Moore meets his second criterion – that the premises must be known to be
true. In Moore’s argument, he is using his own perception to verify the existence of both his
hands, and thus, the external world. However, there is no proof that Moore truly knows that
his hands exist, he is simply only inclined to believe that they do5, through his perception.
This arises significant concern from sceptics and, by not satisfying the three conditions for
proof, arises significant concern for the successfulness of Moore’s argument.
1
(Anthology, 2021)
2
(Riddick, 2021)
3
(Moore, 1939)
4
(Moore, 1939)
5
(Ong, 2016)
, In order to fully understand the criticism of Moore’s argument, let us look at how the
sceptic argument can be presented:
(P1): I do not know with certainty that I am not currently and constantly being deceived by
way of my existence – I could be being controlled by an evil-demon puppet-master, or I
could simply be a brain in a vat.
(P2): If I do not know with certainty that I am not in a somewhat sceptical scenario, then I
cannot know anything about the external world with certainty.
(C) Therefore, I cannot know with certainty, anything about the external world. 6
Having taken a look at the sceptic method, it is commonly assumed that Moore’s proof of
the external world is what is known as a transmission failure7; just because our perception is
suggesting one thing, isn’t to suggest that it is necessarily representative of the true series
of events. For example, say you are staring at a wall that you believe to be blue, because,
from your perception, it looks blue. Later however, you find out it was actually a white wall
with blue lights being shone onto it – your perception deceived you, and thus is an
unreliable source for verification8. The same applies with Moore’s argument, just because
Moore believes he has hands, which entails that there is a world external to us, his mere
perceptions of his hands could only support his belief that he indeed does have hands if he
already had the support for thinking there is an external world, which, of course, he does
not. Thus, it may appear, that the sceptics position is validated as we cannot provide proof
to show that the things external to our minds are not a hallucination inconsistent with
reality9.
In this sense, Moore’s argument fails, and does not satisfactorily prove the existence of the
external world. His attempted proof of knowledge relies exclusively on a knowledge claim
that is in turn, unproven and perhaps, is entirely unproveable10. Furthermore, in additional
criticism of Moore, he himself claims that he has satisfied the standards of his criterions of
proof11; this however, cannot be considered the case. It cannot be known with absolute
certainty that his premises are true and thus, the argument cannot be valid. Moore’s
argument is entirely reduced to his own intuition12 and where the use of our intuition may
be necessary in many philosophical scenarios, it is not proof.
However, despite this, the overall intention of this essay is to highlight how Moore’s
argument is in fact useful at overcoming radical sceptic stances, and how its content can be
interpreted in an entirely different way that doesn’t in fact strengthen the sceptic argument,
but instead weakens it. It can be strongly argued, that it was never Moore’s true intention
to prove the existence of the external world absolutely, more so to highlight the absurdity
of the radical sceptic’s hypothesis. Moore, through a what is, put harshly, considerably basic
6
(Stone, 2000)
7
(Anthology, 2021)
8
(Anthology, 2021)
9
(Stone, 2000)
10
(Coliva, 2008)
11
(Moore, 1939)
12
(Ong, 2016)
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