What is Knowledge?

Overview:

We are entering into a field of philosophy called epistemology - the study of knowledge. Issues in epistemology are concerned with the nature of truth, foundations of knowledge, and how do we know what we know?

There are various epistemologies that one might have. For example, you could be a skeptic, a rationalist, an empiricist, or a relativist about knowledge. Rene Descartes (DAY-cart) started out as a skeptic about knowledge, but used that skepticism to provide a strong foundation for knowledge.

In this week's reading, look at how Descartes argues for this strong foundation. Think about whether one can be certain about what one knows or whether we must be skeptics.

Objectives:

After this module, you should be able to:

• Explain Descartes's epistemology.
• Analyze the arguments put forth by Descartes.
• Debate the ideas presented by Descartes.
• Demonstrate an understanding of epistemology.
• Communicate ideas in the video and reading to your classmates.

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