The Theory of

Knowledge
AN INTRODUCTION TO EPISTEMOLOGY
the branch of philosophy concerned with the
study of knowledge
Objectives
What questions did philosophers ask about human knowledge?
What answers did they give?
1. Two main cognitive faculties: reason & senses
2. What is truth? What criteria have been proposed for identifying it?
3. Is human knowledge limited or limitless?
Cognitive Faculties
(Senses vs. Reason)
Sensitive Knowledge = result of processing all
the information derived from our senses; it
consists of
1. Sensations: psycho-physical phenomena that
occur when our sensory organs are
stimulated
2. Perception: interpretation of the sensations
captured by our senses
Sensations and Perception
1. What is the difference?
◦ Sensation is gathering information from the environment via our senses.
Perception is understanding what is being sensed using our brain.
2. How are they similar?
◦ They are both selective. Many stimuli (stimulus: a thing that provokes a
specific reaction in you, e.g. bell rings) go unnoticed.
Perception is selective: it does not provide us with a faithful reflection of reality.
Cognitive Faculties
(Senses vs. Reason)
The ability to reason is exclusive to human
beings. Only we are able to think about the
world in a rational manner.
1. Concepts: mental pictures we use to
understand what we perceive; results of
abstraction (deriving general rules from
specific examples)
2. Judgement: true or false statements
3. Reasoning: a series of judgements
connected to each other using logical laws
Rationalism,
Empiricism,
Criticism
THREE OPPOSING
P H I LO S O P H I C A L P O S I T I O N S
ON THE ROLE OF SENSES AND
REASON IN KNOWLEDGE
Only knowledge that comes exclusively from reason
is valid. Senses are unreliable. Our mind sometimes
uses concepts that do not come from our senses.
Therefore, sensory knowledge is not valid.

Rationalism
> Reason alone explains the workings
of the world.
Reason can only work with the info
provided by senses. Without
experience, no reasoning.

Empiricism
> The mind is a tabula rasa (blank
paper), informed by the world of
experience. Reasons are secondary.
Agrees with empiricists: knowledge is valid only if
it is based on senses. But some knowledge does
not come from experience, they serve to order
the information provided by senses.

Criticism
> Neither empirical knowledge (sensory data) or
rational reasoning alone is sufficient to explain all
knowledge. The mind must add something to
sensory data to attain knowledge.
Locke (Empiricism): all Descartes (Rationalism): Kant (Criticism/Kantian
knowledge comes from the knowledge is derived from Synthesis): knowledge is
senses reason and logic acquired through experience
and processed through the mind
Types of Knowledge
Our knowledge can be divided into two large areas:
1. Theoretical knowledge: all knowledge that has been accumulated. It aims to
understand reality and discover the truth.
2. Practical knowledge: it aims to guide our behaviour in moral actions, in order
to achieve goodness, and in technical production, to achieve benefit. It allows
us to better ourselves.
The Truth
Truth is understood in two ways:
1. Truth=authenticity, the opposite of appearances.
2. Truth=statements and judgements, the opposite of falsehoods.
Criteria of Truth:
Empirical Evidence
If corroborated by (verified with) information obtained from
sensory experience.
Criteria of Truth:
Rational Evidence
If reason makes it impossible to doubt it.
Criteria of Truth:
Coherence
If it does not contradict other statements that were
previously accepted.
Criteria of Truth:
Authority
If so stated by persons/institutions considered to be
authority.
Criteria of Truth:
Consensus
If any educated, rational subject accepts it as such.
Criteria of Truth:
Usefulness
If the result of putting a statement in practice is beneficial.
Theories of Truth
1. Theory of truth as correspondence: truth enables us to communicate our
thought with reality. A true statement corresponds to reality.
2. Theory of truth as coherence: truth is found in a system. True statements do
not contradict others.
3. Theory of truth as success: Truth leads us to success. Falsity leads us to
failure.
Limitations of Human Knowledge:
Errors, Falsehood
 Are these limitations circumstantial (depending on circumstances/context),
surmountable (can be overcome), intrinsic (innate)?
 Is there only one identical truth for everyone?
Relativism and
Perspectivism
Deals with the existence of limits to
our knowledge.
Relativism: each group/culture in
a given time period sees reality
differently. No universal truth.
 Perspectivism: each individual
sees a fragment of the truth.
There is a single, universal truth,
but it is not within our reach.
Dogmatism and
Scepticism
Deals with the (im)possibility of
knowledge.
 Dogmatism: we can achieve
complete knowledge and certainty
of truth.
 Scepticism: we cannot achieve
complete knowledge and certainty
over anything.