1st Edition
Pragmatic Encroachment in Epistemology
According to philosophical lore, epistemological orthodoxy is a purist epistemology in which epistemic concepts such as belief, evidence, and knowledge are characterized to be pure and free from practical concerns. In recent years, the debate has focused narrowly on the concept of knowledge and a number of challenges have been posed against the orthodox, purist view of knowledge. While the debate about knowledge is still a lively one, the pragmatic exploration in epistemology has just begun.
This collection takes on the task of expanding this exploration into new areas. It discusses how the practical might encroach on all areas of our epistemic lives from the way we think about belief, confidence, probability, and evidence to our ideas about epistemic value and excellence. The contributors also delve into the ramifications of pragmatic views in epistemology for questions about the value of knowledge and its practical role. Pragmatic Encroachment in Epistemology will be of interest to a broad range of epistemologists, as well as scholars working on virtue theory and practical reason.
1. Introduction
Brian Kim and Matthew McGrath
2. Great Expectations: Belief and the Case for Pragmatic Encroachment
Dorit Ganson
3. Another Kind of Pragmatic Encroachment
Kate Nolfi
4. Pragmatic Encroachment and Practical Reasons
Anne Baril
5. An Externalist Decision Theory for a Pragmatic Epistemology
Brian Kim
6. Pragmatic Encroachment and Having Reasons
Stewart Cohen
7. Pragmatic Encroachment and Closure
Charity Anderson and John Hawthorne
8. Pragmatic Encroachment on Scientific Knowledge?
Mikkel Gerken
9. Skepticism and Evolution
Angel Pinillos
10. Deliberation and Pragmatic Belief\
Brad Armendt
11. Doxastic Wronging
Rima Basu and Mark Schroeder
12. A Note on Knowledge-First Decision Theory and Practical Adequacy
Juan Comesana
Biography
Brian Kim received his PhD from Columbia University and is assistant professor of philosophy at Oklahoma State University. He works on issues at the intersection of epistemology and rational choice theory.
Matthew McGrath received his PhD from Brown and is currently Professor of Philosophy at Rutgers and Professorial Fellow at Arché, the University of St. Andrews. Within epistemology, he has published on topics including pragmatic encroachment, perceptual and memorial justification. He is the author, with Jeremy Fantl, of Knowledge in an Uncertain World.
"This is a very welcome anthology with some excellent contributions. It has a good focus (neither too much spread nor too much overlap of topics). Everyone working on pragmatic encroachment or related topics will certainly want to read it." -- Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews
"Recent work in epistemology has blurred the conceptual line between the epistemic or theoretical, and the practical: knowledge and evidence have become tightly connected in normative ways to one’s practical interests and reasons for action. This volume is a welcome collection of new essays which explore this debate and take it in new directions." -- Matthew A. Benton, Seattle Pacific University
