The definition of a skeptic as we know it is one who doubts the truth of something. This meaning is similar in philosophy, but it is more specific. "Skepticism in Western philosophy is the attitude of doubting knowledge claims set forth in various areas. Skeptics have challenged the adequacy or reliability of these claims by asking what principles they are based upon or what they actually establish. They have questioned whether some such claims really are, as alleged, indubitable or necessarily true, and they have challenged the purported rational grounds of accepted assumptions." (Popkin 1) When skepticism is used as a regular word and not with a philosophical purpose, it means that on a daily basis, almost everybody doubts and is skeptical about some issues and claims. Whereas when referring to philosophical skepticism, it means to doubt "the possibility of any knowledge beyond that of the contents of directly felt experience" (Popkin 1).
Many philosophers are known to be skeptics. "The Eleatic philosophers rejected the existence of plurality and change, conceiving of reality as a static one, and they denied that reality could be described in terms of the categories of ordinary experience. Heracleitus and his pupil Cratylus thought that the world was in such a state of flux that no permanent, unchangeable truth about it could be found; and Xenophanes, a wandering poet and philosopher, doubted whether humans could distinguish true from false knowledge" (Popkin 1). When speaking of the Eleatic philosophers, Heracleitus and his pupil Cratylus, and Xenophanes; we are speaking about ancient skepticism, where "skeptical philosophical attitudes began to appear in ancient Greece about the 5th century BCE" (Popkin 1).
Other philosophers (or sophists) that are more familiar to our basic learning of classical philosophy that were skeptics in their time were Protagoras and Descartes.
Socrates, on the other hand, is very much concerned with inquiry. Socrates does not accept relativism. ... Socrates was not a skeptic, either. ... Socrates did what was right and I will explain why I think this. ... Socrates" other reply is the Argument from Gratitude. ...
Socrates calls this idea of "learning as recollection" a meaningless argument. ... Socrates says that the human soul is immortal and can be reborn again and again. ... The boy seemed to know nothing about Socrates" problem. ... I suppose I am somewhat of a skeptic when it comes to "reincarnational knowledge." ... In conclusion, Socrates" beliefs make sense in some ways. ...
Plato's rejection of the senses, and adherence to a normative belief at the core of his work, is the subject of many other philosophical schools' attacks on his works, most notably the skeptics, the naturalists, and Aristotle. ... As a young man, Plato was a disciple of Socrates, and his early work bears the mark of Socrates' heavy influence. ... Socrates asks for a definition of piety, Euthyphro confidently gives one. ... Socrates shows how this new definition conflicts, etc. ... These two are Socrates primary interlocutors during the Republic. ...
He was a skeptic to say the least, he doubted everything, and his goal was to uncover all the layers of assumed truths in order to find the definite truths. In the fashion of Socrates, Decartes recognized how little he did know, and tried not to profess any more. Though this was not always true (it turned out that he was very proud and sometimes unwilling to be corrected), his philosophy can be paralleled to Socrates. ...
Plato's rejection of the senses, and adherence to a normative belief at the core of his work, is the subject of many other philosophical schools' attacks on his works, most notably the skeptics, the naturalists, and Aristotle. ... As a young man, Plato was a disciple of Socrates, and his early work bears the mark of Socrates' heavy influence. ... Socrates asks for a definition of piety, Euthyphro confidently gives one. ... Socrates shows how this new definition conflicts, etc. ... These two are Socrates primary interlocutors during the Republic. ...
Philosophers known as skeptics argue that humans can never know truth, while those in opposition believe that evidence is the decisive factor in determining truth ("Tomlin"). ... After the father of Western philosophy, Thales, came Socrates, another legendary philosopher. Socrates passed his knowledge onto Plato, who opened an Academy for philosophy and was responsible for teaching the great philosopher Aristotle. ...
"Some philosophers, such as the skeptic David Hume, argue that there is no absolutely sound inductive argument", but we do have good practical inductive arguments based on repeated, accurate observations. ... This classic form derived from the philosopher Socrates as follows, all human beings are "mortal", Ann is a human being; therefore, Ann is mortal. ...
For a while now I've been going through a long thought process wondering not "What is man? " but "What am I?- and where I belong in the garden maze known as life. My philosophy on all the topics that we've had in this course and those that I've experienced in my life are rather optimistic, hypocriti...
The Matrix of Man, Technology, and Reality And how the program for The Matrix Was written hundreds of years ago Introduction: What is the Matrix? Which pill will you take; will it be the red one or the blue? Will you choose the blissfulness of ignorance, or will you see how far down the...
