Are you all alone? Examine the “problem” of Other Minds and decide. In your discussion show how the issue emanates from Cartesian philosophy, and also examine the so-called Argument from Analogy which has been used by various philosophers to justify our belief in other minds. Finally, examine at least one attempt to “dissolve” (rather than solve) the problem and decide if this approach is fruitful.
May 292000
What is the “Gettier Problem”? In the course of this paper we will address the Justified True Belief theory of knowledge; the difficulty raised for this theory via Gettier-style examples; and the prospects (or lack of same) for revising the theory to meet these types of examples.
Apr 152000
The selection in chapter one of Plato’s “Meno” Socrates claims to prove that an uneducated slave-boy actually knows geometry. However, it is quite apparent that this slave-boy is actually being fed leading questions. Socrates does nothing more than ask the correct next question. This type of leading questioning is not unlike the questions asked by professors and instructors when lecturing a new topic. The student had no conscious knowledge of the subject matter at hand before the questioning; the questions were asked and, more importantly, linked in correct succession to arrive at a conclusion. Hence, one actually has no knowledge of x before the exposure to x. The act of asking questions does nothing to prove the knowledge of x.
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Apr 152000
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Plato’s Meno: A critical analysis of… How we really are not born with true knowledge.
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The Gettier Problem: Justified, True, Belief… or is it?
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Are there “Other Minds” out there?
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