Question

Write a brief response to these posts

5.1

vr

The theory of knowledge, especially with regard to its methods, validity, and scope. Epistemology is the investigation of what distinguishes justified belief from opinion.

Rationalism is described as a belief or theory that opinions and actions should be based on reason and knowledge rather than on religious belief or emotional response and Empiricism is described as the theory that all knowledge is derived from sense-experience. Stimulated by the rise of experimental science. A good example of this would be a work setting or a college setting. when you go and sell things it is based off of old numbers. there is no thought on what happens, but in a college setting we have to take someones opinion on it. There is no cold hard facts stating what it is, just opinions on what already hapened.

5.2

cg

A statement by the seventeenth-century French philosopher René Descartes - “I think; therefore I am” was the end of the search Descartes conducted for a statement that could not be doubted. He found that he could not doubt that he himself existed, as he was the one doing the doubting in the first place. In Latin (the language in which Descartes wrote), the phrase is “Cogito, ergo sum” (I think therefore I am, n.d.). This expression from Rene Descartes can relate to rationalism and can also be applied to the first principles as justification for logic is sought out.

In Locke's philosophy, tabula rasa was the theory that at birth the (human) mind is a "blank slate" without rules for processing data, and that data is added and rules for processing are formed solely by one's sensory experiences (Tabula Rasa, 2018). For Locke I can also see the first principles applied as when one is born we learn by experience and what we are taught upon, therefore helping to build the next layers throughout life. I grew up hearing these words not only in school, but also among family members. It is interesting now to see it's roots and the true meaning of it.

Answer 1

Epistemology revolves around a fundamental question: How do we know that we know? I would like to highlight that without epistemology, human beings would have no reason to believe in their thoughts and actions. For example, tecahers would have no reason to give tests or assign class work because there would be no difference between truth and error. We need epistemology in order to accept reality and live our lives in successful pursuit of truth. Apart from Rationalism and Empiricism, there are other branches of epistemology as well such as Idealism, Pragmatism, Constructivsim and so on.

Please post the other questions separately as we are supposed to answer just question or four sub parts of the same question.