The Epistemic Authority of Testimony

Authors

  • Carlos Augusto Sartori Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-6746.2015.3.24268

Keywords:

Testimony. Trust. Justification. Knowledge. Robert Audi.

Abstract

A great deal of what we know is derived from what other people report to us, though not everything other people say is apt to yield justified beliefs. The aim of this paper is to analyze the conditions under which testimony yields justified beliefs and knowledge. Assuming a non-reductionist view of testimony, we follow the persuasive contribution of Robert Audi so as to conclude that testimony is a legitimate source of justification and knowledge, arguing that trusting other people can, under certain circumstances, satisfy the conditions for justification and knowledge.

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References

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HUME, David. Investigação sobre o entendimento humano. Trad. Leonel Vallandro. São Paulo: Abril Cultural, 1973 [1748]. (Coleção Os Pensadores).

LACKEY, Jenniffer. Knowing from Testimony. In: Philosophy Compass, 1:5 (2006), p. 432-448. Available from: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1747-9991.2006.00035.x/full. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-9991.2006.00035.x

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Published

2016-06-10

How to Cite

Sartori, C. A. (2016). The Epistemic Authority of Testimony. Veritas (Porto Alegre), 60(3), 447–459. https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-6746.2015.3.24268

Issue

Vol. 60 No. 3 (2015): Debating Contemporary Epistemology

Section

Debating Contemporary Epistemology

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