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Notes on Epistemology Rev. John J. Toohey, S.J. Georgetown University Washington, D.C. The unique place of reason in natural-law philosophy has been affirmed by the modern Thomistic philosopher, the late Father John Toohey. Toohey defined sound philosophy as follows: "Philosophy, in the sense in which the word is used when scholasticism is contrasted with other philosophies, is an attempt on the part of man's unaided reason to give a fundamental explanation of the nature of things." – Murray Rothbard Scanned from 1952 monograph (italics replacing underlining) by Anthony Flood February 2007 2 Table of Contents I The Starting Point of Epistemology II Reality and Truth III Proposition, Judgment and Inference IV The Definition of Certitude V Universal Scepticism VI The Cartesian Doubt VII Idealism VIII The Secondary Sensible Qualities IX The Theory of Kant X Kant on the Propositions of Pure Mathematics XI Error XII Pragmatism XIII The New Realism XIV The Misinterpretation of the Abstract Term XV The Misinterpretation of the General Concrete Term XVI Universal Ideas XVII Human Testimony XVIII The Ultimate Motive of Certitude XIX Philosophy and Common Sense XX Philosophy and Its Pitfalls XXI Schiller’s Attack on Formal Logic 3 Theses 1. Certitude is a firm assent to a perceived truth. 2. The doctrine of universal scepticism cannot be professed without self-contradiction; the state of mind of universal scepticism is intrinsically impossible. 3. No reasonable man can demand a proof of every truth before assenting to it. 4. There is a world outside of us. 5. The theory of Kant offers no escape from the scepticism of subjective idealism and undermines its own foundation. 6. There is no proof that the human mind has ever been deceived per se. 7. The assent which the mind gives to a truth without scientifically weighing the grounds is in many cases a genuine certitude. 8. The pragmatist’s account of truth is arbitrary and his philosophical position is without foundation. 9. There are direct universal ideas, i.e., universal ideas whose objects are independent of the mind. The world of reality affords a foundation for the universality of the direct universal ideas. 10. The systems of Ultra-realism, nominalism, and conceptualism are false. 11. The mind can acquire certitude of historical fact from human testimony. 12. Evidence is the universal criterion of truth and the ultimate motive of every act of certitude. 4 Introduction The Definition of Epistemology Epistemology is derived from the two Greek words “episteme” knowledge and “logos” science, and means the science of knowledge. As employed in philosophy the word means the science of the certitude of human knowledge. The material object of Epistemology is human knowledge and its sources. The formal object of Epistemology is the certitude of human knowledge. Epistemology is also called Major Logic, Applied Logic, Material Logic, Critical Logic, Criteriology, and Fundamental Philosophy. Since the name Logic without qualification is now very generally applied to the science of valid argument, it can hardly be regarded as a good name for the science of certitude. Fundamental Philosophy is not suitable as a name, because it does not tell what the science is concerned with; and besides, it supposes that there is general agreement that the science of certitude is the foundation of all philosophy.
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