A Companion to Epistemology

Since its first publication, A Companion to Epistemology has established itself as the leading single–volume epistemology reference work in the field. This extended and revised edition brings the companion up to date. Part I, consisting of newly commissioned review essays, focuses on the major topics that have an abiding centrality for the field, including a priori justification, Bayesian epistemology, closure, contextualism, epistemic virtue, internalism vs. externalism, foundationalism vs. coherentism, perception, scepticism, and social epistemology. Part II brings together twenty self–portraits of leading epistemologists who are widely recognized and respected for their contributions to the field, including Fred Dretske, Alvin Goldman, Gilbert Harman, Alvin Plantinga, John Pollock, Timothy Williamson, and Linda Zagzebski. The content of the first edition is retained in Part III: Epistemology from A–Z. This section of nearly 300 entries has been extensively revised, with many new and rewritten entries reflecting recent developments in the field. Written by leading experts, the entries in this comprehensive volume combine to form a complete and up–to–date reference guide for students and professionals alike.

List of Contributors xiii Preface to the First Edition xix Preface to the Second Edition xxiii Part I Ten Review Essays 1 Skepticism and Closure Anthony Brueckner 3 Contextualism Richard Feldman 12 Foundations and Coherence Michael Huemer 22 Recent Work on the Internalism–Externalism Controversy Laurence BonJour 33 A Priori Knowledge Albert Casullo 43 The Common Sense Tradition Noah Lemos 53 The Power of Perception Peter Markie 62 Virtue Epistemology John Greco 75 Social Epistemology Alvin Goldman 82 Bayesian Epistemology Alan Hájek and Stephan Hartmann 93 Part II Twenty Epistemological Self–profiles 107 Robert Audi 109 Laurence BonJour 114 Stewart Cohen 118 Earl Conee and Richard Feldman 123 Fred Dretske 130 Richard Foley 134 Richard Fumerton 139 Alvin I. Goldman 144 Gilbert Harman 152 Peter Klein 156 Hilary Kornblith 163 Keith Lehrer 168 Alvin Plantinga 173 John Pollock 178 Ernest Sosa 185 Barry Stroud 190 Michael Williams 194 Timothy Williamson 199 Crispin Wright 204 Linda Zagzebski 210 Part III Epistemology from A to Z 217

Jonathan Dancy is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Reading and the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of Introduction to Contemporary Epistemology (Blackwell, 1985), Berkeley (1987), Moral Reasons (Blackwell, 1992) and Ethics without Principles (2004). Ernest Sosa is Board of Governors Professor at Rutgers University. He is the author of Epistemic Justification: Internalism vs. Externalism, Foundations vs. Virtues (together with Laurence BonJour) in the Wiley–Blackwell series Great Debates in Philosophy (2003), A Virtue Epistemology; Apt Belief and Reflective Knowledge, Volume I (2007), and Reflective Knowledge; Apt Belief and Reflective Knowledge, Volume II (2009). His publications also include his replies for the volume Sosa and His Critics (edited by John Greco, 2004) in the Wiley–Blackwell series Philosophers and Their Critics, as well as numerous articles. Matthias Steup is Professor of Philosophy at Purdue University. He is the author of An Introduction to Contemporary Epistemology (1996) and many articles in epistemology.  He edited Knowledge, Truth, and Duty: Essays on Epistemic Justification, Responsibility, and Virtue (2001), and he is co–editor with Ernest Sosa of Contemporary Debates in Epistemology (Blackwell, 2005).   

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