Knowledge as JTB

1. Knowledge as JTB Someone S has knowledge of P IFF: S believes P S is justified in believing P P is true

2. JTB • This definition of knowledge was formulated by Plato in Theaetetus. • It remains the generally accepted definition of knowledge • Edmund Gettier, however, challenges the adequacy of such a definition – it is known as the Gettier Problem

3. Justification • One primary question: Does having justification for P entail that P is true? • Infalliblism: If S knows P, then S cannot be mistaken in believing P, thus S’s justification for believing P guarantees its truth. i.e. one cannot be justified in believing a false claim. • Falliblism: The infalliblist argument only works in the case where S cannot possibly be wrong about P. However, there is nothing to guarantee that S is right. Basically, its right to say that “It is impossible for S to be wrong about P if he knows P.” but it is not necessarily right to say that “If S knows P, then it is impossible for him to be wrong about P.”

4. Falliblism and its implications • Falliblism suggests that truth and justification may or may not be connected in any situation. • How then can we possibly connect S’s belief that P with the truth of P correctly? • Foundationalism • Coherentism • Reliablism

5. Foundationalism • We justify one belief with another, which also requires support from others and so on and so forth. • Foundationalism suggests that there is a termination to such a regression in a set of beliefs that are fundamentally and independently secure. • These beliefs are either self-justifying, self-evident or indefeasible. • However, it is difficult to see how these self-evident beliefs (mathematics and simple logical propositions) can lead to more complex, dependent beliefs. The latter does not seem to be deducible from the former. • If it cannot be deduced, then it would have to be induced, but induction is in itself defeasible.

6. Reliabilism • Reliable process of having a belief • Rational • Scientific • Mathematical • Logical • Problems: • Externalism vs internalism debate: no knowledge of process, yet knowledge • The New Evil Demon

7. Coherentism • Attempts to solve the regress problem • Foundationalism’s answer – axioms! Descartes, Spinoza • Coherentism – regress means nothing – fundamental assumption is wrong! • The criteria of coherence • System of beliefs should cohere • Use the same explanation for divergent statements • Use ONE explanation for similar statements

8. Gettier Problem Something’s wrong with JTB

9. Case 1: Original case • Two characters, Smith (Main) and John. • Both sign-up for job and President of the Co. tells Smith that John got the job. • Smith comes to the conclusion that whoever got the job had ten coins in the pocket. • He has this belief because he counted the coins in John’s pocket. • His belief is justified. (JB present)

10. But… • Smith got the job instead, not knowing that he did had ten coins in his pocket as well. • So his belief is true. (JTB criteria fulfilled.) • But is it knowledge??? • No, because he did not know who truly got the job.

11. Another example • John sees a person who appears to be Jane dancing in room A. • John then forms a belief that Jane is dancing. • He can justify it because he has seen someone who looks like Jan dance. • The belief is also true because Jane is indeed dancing.

12. But… • However, despite it fulfilling JTB, there is an error in it because even though Jane is dancing, she is not dancing in room A. • Instead she is dancing in room B and the person which John saw dancing in room A was Jane’s identical twin. • His belief cannot be knowledge because he does not know the true location of Jane.

13. Solutions to this • Infallibility proposal • Eliminate Luck Proposal • No False Evidence Proposal

14. Infallibility proposal • Explained that because we use our senses to justify, we make errors. • Therefore the best way to prevent such a case is to not use any fallible evidence to justify a belief at all. • This is however, unrealistic as in our real lives we rarely have infallible knowledge. • A mistaken approach to the cases which dismisses almost all we know.

15. Eliminate Luck Proposal • Luck is one of the main reasons for resulting in the Gettier Cases. • So if it is eliminated or reduced then higher chance for the belief to be right. • However, this method has been quite vague. • However, based on my understanding, scientific research can be considered such a method; the control of variables and having a controlled environment.

16. No False Evidence Proposal • In the Smith case, why he came to the JTB yet not knowledge was because he heard that Jones was going to get the job. • So if that piece of information was taken away, he would not have come to that conclusion. • So JTB should be modified such that for the belief to be knowledge, the justification has to be true.