The problem of the criterion is a foundational issue in epistemology concerning the starting point of knowledge, distinct from and more basic than the regress argument that arises in discussions of justification. Its earliest surviving statement in Western philosophy comes from the Pyrrhonist Sextus Empiricus, who argued in his Outlines of Pyrrhonism that no criterion of truth had ever been established, against dogmatists such as the Stoics and their doctrine of katalepsis. The American philosopher Roderick Chisholm later framed the problem as two linked questions: what do we know, and how do we know it. Answering the first question before the second is called particularism, answering the second before the first is called methodism, and skepticism holds that neither question can be answered without already having answered the other, leaving none of our beliefs justified.
Facts
Origin YearSourced to the subject's own accountApproximate; Sextus Empiricus own dates are uncertain, conventionally placed around the late 2nd to early 3rd century CE. Connections
In Branch
Source Problem of the Criterion (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Problem of the Criterion (Wikipedia)
WikipediaProblem of the criterion (Wikipedia), introduction
In the field of epistemology, the problem of the criterion is an issue regarding the starting point of knowledge.
Problem of the criterion (Wikipedia), on Sextus Empiricus
In Western philosophy, the earliest surviving documentation of the problem of the criterion is in the works of the Pyrrhonist philosopher Sextus Empiricus.
View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.
View At A Past Year
Choose a year to see this entry's facts and connections as the atlas records them at that moment: what it held then, what it held instead, and what it had not yet adopted. Choose Present for the current record.