What is the origin of the word epistemology?
The word epistemology comes from ancient Greek terms meaning knowledge and study of reason. It was coined in the 19th century to designate this field as a distinct branch of philosophy.
Questions about Epistemology
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who were the early philosophers who studied epistemology?
Plato studied what distinguishes knowledge from true opinion while his student Aristotle explored scientific knowledge through sensory experience and inference from general principles. The Upanishads composed between 700 and 300 BCE examined how people acquire knowledge including introspection and deduction.
How does philosophical skepticism challenge human knowledge?
Philosophical skepticism questions whether humans can attain knowledge by challenging foundations upon which claims rest. Global skeptics assert there is no knowledge in any domain while Pyrrhonian skeptics recommended suspension of belief for tranquility.
When did René Descartes use methodological doubt to find certain knowledge?
René Descartes used methodological doubt to find absolutely certain knowledge starting from the assertion I think therefore I am. This approach established a foundation for inquiry into the nature of knowledge.
Why do empiricists emphasize sense experience as primary source?
Empiricists emphasize sense experience as primary source because they argue that all ideas depend on experience either as ideas of sense or reflection. John Locke rejected innate ideas arguing instead that all ideas depend on experience.