Philosophical Skepticism

Philosophical Skepticism provides a selection of important writings by both skeptics and opponents of the skeptical tradition of Western philosophy. These writings, together with the historical introduction by Landesman and Meeks, clearly illustrate the profound influence that skeptical stances have had on the nature of philosophical inquiry.

This collection spans the centuries of skeptical and anti–skeptical arguments, from Socrates to Rorty. It includes selections from the writings of Plato, Diogenes Laertius, Cicero, Sextus Empiricus, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Kierkegaard, Russell, Quine, Nagel, and many others. From this collection, readers will gain a sufficient background to engage in further study of skepticism from both classical and contemporary sources.

Acknowledgments.

Introduction.

Part I: Global Skepticism:.

1. From Apology: Plato.

2. From Pyrrho: Diogenes Laertius.

3. From Academica: Cicero.

4. From Outlines of Pyrrhonism: Sextus Empiricus.

5. "Meditation I": René Descartes.

6. From An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding: David Hume.

7. From The View from Nowhere: Thomas Nagel.

8. "A Defense of Skepticism": Peter Unger.

Part II: Skeptical Topics:.

Perception.

9. "The Refutation of Realism": W. T. Stace.

10. From "Proof of an External World": G. E. Moore.

11. From Sense and Sensibilia: J. L. Austin.

Induction.

12. From The Theory of Probability: Hans Reichenbach.

13. "Reliabilism and Induction": Michael Levin.

Other Minds.

14. "Other Minds": Thomas Nagel.

15. "Analogy": Bertrand Russell.

16. "Knowledge of Other Minds": Norman Malcolm.

Self Knowledge.

17. "Meditation II": René Descartes.

18. "Of Personal Identity": David Hume.

19. From "The Paralogisms of Pure Reason": Immanuel Kant.

20. From Beyond Good and Evil: Friedrich Nietzsche.

21. From Tractatus Logico–Philosophicus: Ludwig Wittgenstein.

Religious Belief.

22. From "Apology for Raymond Sebond": Michel de Montaigne.

23. From Pensées: Blaise Pascal.

24. "Of Miracles": David Hume.

25. From Concluding Unscientific Postscript: Soren Kierkegaard.

Part III: Responses and Reactions:.

26. "Meditation VI": René Descartes.

27. From The Forced Marriage: Jean–Baptiste Molière.

28. From A Treatise of Human Nature: David Hume.

29. From Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man: Thomas Reid.

30. From Prolegomena and Critique of Pure Reason: Immanuel Kant.

31. From Being and Time: Martin Heidegger.

32. From "Two Dogmas of Empiricism" and "Epistemology Naturalized": W. V. Quine.

33. "Solidarity or Objectivity": Richard Rorty.

Index.

Charles Landesman is Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Hunter College and the Graduate School of the City University of New York. His previous publications include Discourse and Its Presuppositions (1972), Color and Consciousness (1989), The Eye and the Mind (1993), and An Introduction to Epistemology (Blackwell 1996).

Roblin Meeks is a faculty member of the Expository Writing Program at Harvard University. He is currently at work on a book about self–identification.

These skillfully arranged readings should engage any student with potential for philosophy." Ernest Sosa, Brown University <!––end––>

This thoughtfully edited volume is warmly to be welcomed as an extremely valuable resource for students and teachers of philosophy. It is distinctive in its breadth of coverage, ranging from classic works of ancient Greek authors to recent writings of major contemporary philosophers and focusing not only on global skepticism but also, very usefully, on many of the more specific varieties. Jonathan Lowe, University of Durham