Truth and Knowledge: Relativism, Skepticism, and Dogmatism

Relativism

Relativism: Each has its own truth, and nothing is better than that of others. There are no absolute truths, but all depend on the person or culture in which they remain.

Skepticism

Skepticism: It is not possible to argue knowledge; no truths can be established. Gorgias, a Sophist of the 5th century BC, showed it well:

1. Nothing exists.
2. If anything existed, it could not be known to man.
3. If anything existed, it could not be expressed with language.

Sophists

Sophists: Teachers of "political virtue" of Athens in the 5th century BC. Language did not express reality but was an instrument of manipulation, a weapon of persuasion. The Athenian youths, eager to succeed in politics, paid to be taught this. They believed in relativism, skepticism, and the conventionality of the law.

Truth

Ontological Truth

The Greeks thought that truth was what things permanently are, beyond appearances. What was truly real was achievable by the mind, while the senses only capture appearance. The mind had to go beyond the authentic appearance to reveal the being of things.

Epistemological Truth

The concept is to hang points with more exactitude and rigor in what is directly affirmed. Then, truth moves objects to God; God says what directly matches objects. Let it be a property of being to become knowledge of our own things.

Criteria of Truth

• Correspondence: "To have virtue is to coincide with common sense, agreement with reality." Problems:

  1. The idea of correspondence is confusing. What do we mean when we talk about correspondence?
  2. The theory assumes that things are a reality in themselves, independent of our knowledge.

• Consistency: A proposition is true if it is consistent with other propositions belonging to the system. Descartes, a rationalist, decided to doubt everything until something came true, something so obvious it was impossible to question it: "I think, therefore I am."

• Utility: It coincides with the useful, which directly leads to practical results. A conception is always temporary and tied to pragmatic results. The proposition is considered true if you get benefits from taking any system.

• Consensus: In idealized conditions, all inhabitants will express themselves freely. An intersubjective agreement is reached.

Dogmatism

Dogmatism affirms man's ability to learn, although it admits the possibility of being wrong.

1. Radical Dogmatism: Man admits only a dogmatic way to validate his vision of things, making it absolute. This leads to error and prejudice, preventing the advancement of knowledge and science.

2. Moderate Dogmatism: It is characterized by reasonable confidence in achieving human buffering of the truth. It draws upon the critical attitude to build knowledge.