Skepticism

Skepticism is the view that we do not and certainly cannot have knowledge.  It will try to identify the flaws in any argument and sometimes that could be a challenge. So are there any good responses to the arguments of skeptics? “The issue raised by skepticism is largely about whether the reasons we have for our ordinary beliefs are good enough to yield knowledge.” (108)

There are different kinds of skepticism. Global Skepticism claims that no one really know anything at all, while Limited Skepticism holds that knowledge is limited only in certain areas.  In a sense we are all in some level limited skeptics.  An example of limited skepticism is the claim that we know exactly how many languages have been spoken al throughout the history of man.  No one really knows that and everyone would agree that we don’t know that.  So someone may be a skeptic in that claim but not in others.

 Skepticism however has the possibility of error.  According to Descartes, “ the world you think you live in might be entirely artificial. For almost anything about the world that you believe, it is possible that you are mistaken because you are the victim of some such illusion or deception.  The basis for the possibility of error is as follows:

1.    For (almost) any belief any person has about the external world, that belief could be mistaken.
2.    If a belief could be mistaken, then it is not a case of knowledge.
3.    Therefore, (almost) any belief any person has about the external world is not knowledge.

That means that “no one really knows anything, or more than very little, about the external world.

Skepticism differs greatly from Modest Foundationalism in that Modest Foundationalism recognizes any belief about the external world as knowledge even if they could be mistaken, while Skepticism holds that any belief about the external world is not infallible therefore it cannot be knowledge.

For example,  I see a book in front me right now.  

According to Modest Foundationalism this is a knowledge because it is a justified basic belief.  It is a justified basic belief because my sensory stimuli is perceiving it. 

vs.

The Skeptic view that holds that any belief about the external world could be wrong so it cannot be knowledge.  If I think I see a book in front of me I could be wrong. I could be dreaming or I could be hallucinating. I could be fooled into believing there is a book in front of me.