Category Archives: Epistemology

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 3: ‘Fog Over Channel, Continent Isolated’: Epistemology in the ‘Two Traditions’ – Section II. Part 2: Koyré (Norris does not split the section into parts.) Alexandre Koyré also transcends … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 3: ‘Fog Over Channel, Continent Isolated’: Epistemology in the ‘Two Traditions’ – Section II. Part 1: Duhem (this will be followed by Part 2: Koyré, though Norris didn’t split … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 3: ‘Fog Over Channel, Continent Isolated’: Epistemology in the ‘Two Traditions’ – Section I.That’s a funny title (said to be an old headline)-since the island is usually what would … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 2: Realism, Reference and Possible Worlds – Section IV.Realism: “the claim that there exists a real-world domain of physical objects, events, structures, properties, causal powers and so forth which … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 2: Realism, Reference and Possible Worlds – Section III.A lingering question left from the last section-what IS the difference between the reality of David Lewis’ possible worlds, and Thomas … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 2: Realism, Reference and Possible Worlds – Section II.So, “the Kripkean treatment of issues in modal logic” is a main source for a revival of causal realism: “the claim … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 2: Realism, Reference and Possible Worlds – Section I.I gotta say it straight out-Professor Norris’ style is not accessible to the undergrad. This is not a fun type of … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 1: Staying for an Answer: Truth, Knowledge, and the Rumsfeld Creed –Sections II-III.These sections deal with Michael Dummett and what has come to be called Dummettian anti-realism. The Verification … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Chapter 1: Staying for an Answer: Truth, Knowledge, and the Rumsfeld Creed –Section I.This section is pretty interesting and examines this quote from former U.S. Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, … Continue reading →

Book Discussion of Christopher Norris’ “Epistemology: Key Concepts in Philosophy” Introduction, section IV.So, to recap, Norris is going to make the case for realism as ontological commitment and as an “accounting for the growth of scientific knowledge by way of … Continue reading →