Epistemology- A Level AQA Philosophy Prep Exam And All Correct Answers.
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Course
A Level Philosophy
Institution
A Level Philosophy
a posteriori - Answer Knowledge of propositions that can only be known to be true or false through sense experience.
a priori - Answer Knowledge of propositions that do not require (sense) experience to be known to be true or false.
Propositional Knowledge - Answer Knowledge of facts...
Epistemology- A Level AQA Philosophy
Prep Exam And All Correct Answers.
a posteriori - Answer Knowledge of propositions that can only be known to be true or false through
sense experience.
a priori - Answer Knowledge of propositions that do not require (sense) experience to be known to be
true or false.
Propositional Knowledge - Answer Knowledge of facts.
Belief - Answer Assenting to a proposition or agreeing that it is true.
Philosophical Scepticism - Answer We should doubt that our beliefs are justified and that we have
knowledge.
Normal Incredulity - Answer Demanding strong reasons or evidence for a claim before believing it.
Justification - Answer Possessing good reasons for a belief.
Infallibilism - Answer To be knowledge, a belief must be certain. If we can doubt a belief, then it is not
certain, and so it is not knowledge.
Indubitable - Answer Impossible to doubt.
Fallibilism - Answer The principle that propositions concerning empirical knowledge can be accepted
even though they cannot be proved with certainty.
Local Scepticism - Answer Local scepticism is scepticism about a particular kind of knowledge claims —
eg the religious sceptic doubts the possibility of knowledge of God.
,Global Scepticism - Answer Doubt about the justification of ALL beliefs and knowledge.
Rational Intuition - Answer The capacity to discover the truth of a claim just by thinking about it using
reason.
Deduction - Answer An argument where the conclusion is guaranteed to be true if the premises are
true.
Substance - Answer Something that can exist independently of anything else and has a specific set of
properties.
Necessary Condition - Answer A condition which is required to be met in order for something to be
true.
Sufficient Condition - Answer A condition which, if met, guarantees that something is true.
What is the role of scepticism? - Answer To find out if we can have knowledge, how much knowledge
we have and how we know what we know.
Knowledge= Justified True Belief - Answer S knows that p if and
only if
a) S believes that p
b) S is justified in
believing that p
c) p is true
Descartes' Method of Doubt - Answer Since we require certainty for knowledge, Descartes uses doubt
to work out what we know. For any belief that can be rationally doubted is not knowledge and should be
given up. To doubt a belief is to find a belief with reasons that do not guarantee that it is true.
Once we find a belief that cannot be rationally doubted (i.e. indubitable), we have knowledge.
,Foundationalism (Descartes) - Answer Claims that a belief can be justified if it comes from sound
premises. A belief is justified only if it is based upon something which guarantees that it is true, like the
walls of a sound building are based on solid foundations. Everything else is then 'built' up on top of this.
Internalism - Answer All justification rests on internal/mental states. For Descartes, you should only
believe something because of reasons which you possess.
These reasons can come from perception or memory or by making an argument.
What was Descartes' project? - Answer A search for beliefs that can be foundations for all knowledge.
Descartes' First Wave of Doubt (ILLUSION) - Answer 1. Most of my beliefs which I am most certain of
are based on perception.
2. However, the senses sometimes deceive us, about objects that are very small or distant
for example.
3. It is unwise to trust completely what has deceived us even once.
4. Knowledge requires complete trust (i.e. beliefs must be infallibly justified - with total
rational certainty).
5. Therefore I should give up my beliefs based on perception (i.e. no perceptual
knowledge).
Descartes' response to the First Wave - Answer 1. The senses don't deceive us about experiences of
nearby objects such as me sitting here, holding this
piece of paper.
2. It also seems impossible to doubt such beliefs (that I am sitting here for example).
3. Furthermore, only insane people doubt beliefs based on the senses such as that my hands and body
are
mine.
4. Therefore I should continue to believe many things based on perception (i.e. there is some perceptual
knowledge).
, What is made doubtful by the First Wave? - Answer All (or most of) my a posteriori beliefs (i.e.
those based on sense-experience), including:
Beliefs about the external world
Including my own body.
What knowledge remains despite First Wave - Answer A priori beliefs - independent of sense-
experience
Beliefs based on kinds of perception that do not ever lead to sensory errors, e.g. perception of nearby
objects in good light
Descartes' Second Wave of Doubt (DREAMING) - Answer 1. A person who is asleep can dream the same
experiences as a madman or ordinary
experiences (such as sitting here when in fact you are lying in bed) or being awake and
2. Furthermore, there is no reliable way to distinguish being awake from being asleep.
3. Unless I know that I am awake, I should not believe anything based on sense experience.
4. Therefore I should give up my beliefs based on perception (i.e. no perceptual
knowledge).
Descartes' Response to the Second Wave - Answer 1. The basic elements of a dream must be copies of
reality, such as the properties of shape, quantity, size, number, place, taking up space (called extension)
and time.
2. These ideas might be combined in a dream to create complex ideas which could be false.
3. Therefore I should not believe anything which deals with complex ideas, such as me having a body or
the sciences of physics, astronomy, and medicine.
4. However, even in a dream, I cannot doubt some beliefs involving these simple and universal elements
of dreams. E.g. 2+3=5 and that squares have four sides.
5. Therefore I should still believe truths from arithmetic and geometry
What is made doubtful by the Second Wave? - Answer The existence of particular
physical objects including my
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