The course offers an introduction into some classic problems of epistemology. We will begin with a study of debates that have shaped the history of epistemology: debates about the structure of theories of knowledge, the threat of skepticism, and the impact of non-epistemic factors on what we can know. We will then consider normative questions concerning which factors make our beliefs justified and how we ought to go about forming our beliefs. We will also consider a number of topics in social epistemology, such as how injustice and social identity shape what one can know. The aim of the course is to familiarize students with the central concepts of contemporary epistemology, to enable them to discern the essential features of arguments in epistemological papers and to assess the soundness and validity of these arguments. The course will offer a suitable basis for taking an advanced graduate class in epistemology.
- Instructor: Phyllis Pearson