Radical skepticism

Radical skepticism or radical scepticism is the philosophical position that knowledge is most likely impossible.[1] Radical skeptics hold that doubt exists as to the veracity of every belief and that certainty is therefore never justified. To determine the extent to which it is possible to respond to radical skeptical challenges is the task of epistemology or "the theory of knowledge".[2]

Several Ancient Greek philosophers, including Plato, Cratylus, Pyrrho, Arcesilaus, Carneades, Aenesidemus, Agrippa the Skeptic, and Sextus Empiricus have been viewed as having expounded radically skeptic positions. Three of the Hellenistic philosophies held radically skeptic views: Pyrrhonism, Academic Skepticism, and Cyrenaicism. In ancient Greek the radical skeptical view was termed acatalepsy, denoting the ungraspablity of knowledge.

In modern philosophy, two representatives of radical skepticism are Michel de Montaigne (most famously known for his skeptical remark, Que sçay-je ?, 'What do I know?' in Middle French; modern French Que sais-je ?) and David Hume (particularly as set out in A Treatise of Human Nature, Book 1: "Of the Understanding").

As radical skepticism can be used as an objection for most or all beliefs, many philosophers have attempted to refute it. For example, Bertrand Russell wrote “Skepticism, while logically impeccable, is psychologically impossible, and there is an element of frivolous insincerity in any philosophy which pretends to accept it.”[3]

References

Feyerabend, Paul (1999). For and against Method. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 395. ISBN 0-226-46775-9.
Dancy, Jonathan (1993). A Companion to Epistemology. Oxford: Blackwell. p. 89. ISBN 0-631-19258-1.
Russell, Bertrand (1948). Human knowledge, its scope and limits. New York: Simon and Schuster. pp. 9. OCLC 373835.

Notes

The Epistemology Page

Leavitt, Fred: "The Profound Limitations of Knowledge." (2018) Peter Lang Publishers.

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[1] Feyerabend, Paul (1999). For and against Method. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 395. ISBN 0-226-46775-9.

[2] Dancy, Jonathan (1993). A Companion to Epistemology. Oxford: Blackwell. p. 89. ISBN 0-631-19258-1.

[3] Russell, Bertrand (1948). Human knowledge, its scope and limits. New York: Simon and Schuster. pp. 9. OCLC 373835.

Skepticism
Types	Philosophical Moral Scientific Religious Local Radical
Skeptical philosophies	Academic Skepticism Arcesilaus Lacydes Carneades Clitomachus Philo of Larissa Ajñana Buddhism Cartesian Charvaka Cyrenaicism Madhyamaka Pyrrhonism Pyrrho Timon Aenesidemus Agrippa Sextus Empiricus Xenophanes
Skeptical arguments	Acatalepsy Ten Modes of Aenesidemus Five Modes of Agrippa Anatta Impermanence Münchhausen trilemma Non-essentialism Problem of the criterion Problem of induction Ship of Theseus Wax argument
Skeptical hypotheses	Evil genius Brain in a vat Dream argument Omphalos hypothesis Simulation hypothesis
Responses	Here is one hand Semantic externalism Process reliabilism Epistemic closure Contextualism Relativism
Lists	List of books about skepticism List of scientific skeptics List of skeptical conferences List of skeptical magazines List of skeptical organizations List of skeptical podcasts

Radical skepticism

See also

References