Epistemology: Analyzing Philosophical Theories of Truth

Epistemology: Philosophical Theories of Truth

In philosophy, epistemic theories of truth are attempts to analyze the notion of truth itself.

The Correspondence Theory of Truth

The Correspondence Theory of Truth states that the truth or falsity of a statement is determined only by how it relates to the world and whether it accurately describes (i.e., corresponds with) that world.

This is a traditional model that goes back at least to some of the classical Greek philosophers.

Positivism and Verification

In the 20th Century, Positivism emerged as a prominent current of the correspondence theory of truth. Positivism defines truth through verification: a proposition is meaningful, and thus capable of being true or false, if and only if it is verifiable by sensory experiences.

Philosopher Bertrand Russell theorized that a statement, to be true, must have a structural isomorphism with the state of affairs in the world that makes it true. Consider the statement: "The cat is on the bed." This statement is true if, and only if, the following conditions are met:

• There is a cat (the subject).
• There is a bed (the object).
• The cat is related to the bed by virtue of being on it (the verb/relation).

If any of these three pieces is missing, the statement is false, as the structure of the statement does not correspond to the structure of the world.

Relativism and Perspectivism

According to Perspectivism and Relativism, a proposition is only true relative to a particular perspective. Famous examples include the relativism of the Sophists and the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche.

This approach posits that there are many possible conceptual schemes or perspectives in which a judgment of truth or value can be made. This often implies that no single way of seeing the world can be taken as definitively "true."

A perspective, in this context, refers to a broad spectrum of opinions, norms, and practices held by a community of people. Therefore, a proposition is considered true (for a community C) if, and only if, there is a consensus among the members of C for believing it.

The Contemporary Challenge: Post-Truth

Regarding politics, a new concept has been coined in recent times: post-truth. ("Post-truth" was chosen as the Oxford Dictionaries' Word of the Year 2016.)

Post-truth refers to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal beliefs.

This concept attempts to explain contemporary problems related to democracy, such as the success of politicians who:

• Make promises they cannot keep.
• Appeal primarily to emotions.
• Attempt to manipulate people.
• Do not seek truth, verifiable data, or sensible speech (and are aware of this fact).

Donald Trump is often cited as a prominent example of this phenomenon.