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Where does knowledge come from? Where does knowledge come from?
Knowledge can only be gained through empirical data Knowledge can only be gained through empirical data
Knowledge can only be gained through rationalist proof Knowledge can only be gained through rationalist proof
Knowledge is impossible Knowledge is impossible
Knowledge can be gained through a connection to god Knowledge can be gained through a connection to god
Knowledge can be gained through the scientific method Knowledge can be gained through the scientific method
Rationalists approaches to knowledge open the public up to the cult of common superstition Rationalists approaches to knowledge open the public up to the cult of common superstition
Knowledge can be gained through geometric proof Knowledge can be gained through geometric proof
Sense data is a flawed way of looking at the world Sense data is a flawed way of looking at the world
Knowledge is the product of material conditions Knowledge is the product of material conditions
Both sense data and geometric proofs are flawed ways of gaining knowlege Both sense data and geometric proofs are flawed ways of gaining knowlege
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Where does knowledge come from?
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Knowledge is impossible

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Knowledge is the product of material conditions

We know what we know about the world because of where we live and the complex socioeconomic systems that act upon us at any given time. To reduce knowledge to the individual is reductive.
Sextus Empiricus Gilbert Harman Campbell Biology
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The Argument

Relativism considers knowledge as relative to the environment in which people produce it. Social, cultural, and political factors influence the questions we ask and the answers we can obtain. Things have the property they have (big, small, beautiful, right, wrong…) because they are relative to other things, especially relative to people’s experience of life. Life experience is diverse and different because people come from different backgrounds and have different beliefs. There cannot be false arguments or one true argument. It is impossible to gain objective, purely true information, and therefore, knowledge is impossible. [1]

Counter arguments

Despite the various cultural beliefs and diverse social environments people live in, there are some universal things to all social systems. An example would be the seven universal facial expressions: happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, anger, contempt and surprise.[2] If every argument is true and faultless, disagreements defy the purpose of having arguments. Disagreement means that one side finds the other incorrect or is offering a less likely explanation of the phenomenon discussed. People disagree because some knowledge or arguments are more accurate or correct than others. [1] Such disagreements are valid, which shows that evidence and knowledge are not impossible.

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Premises

Rejecting the premises

References

  1. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/relativism/#EmpClaDivTheCon
  2. https://www.eiagroup.com/facial-expressions-explored/#:~:text=The%207%20Universal%20Facial%20Expressions&text=Happiness%2C%20Sadness%2C%20Fear%2C%20Disgust,%2C%20Anger%2C%20Contempt%20and%20Surprise.&text=Back%20in%20the%20late%201800's,world%2C%20that%20they%20are%20innate.
This page was last edited on Tuesday, 15 Sep 2020 at 01:08 UTC

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