Skepticism in philosophy: concept and basic ideas

One of the most important sections of philosophy is epistemology - a discipline that studies knowledge, its methods, capabilities and theoretical limits. There is such a direction in it as epistemological pessimism - the concept according to which human cognitive capabilities are limited and will never allow us to fully understand the true nature of reality.

The pessimistic approach includes 2 branches:

Agnosticism. Within the framework of this concept, the world is considered unknowable to humans. In other words, there will always be questions to which reliable answers cannot be obtained using the means and methods at our disposal.
Skepticism. This concept questions the very possibility of a reliable understanding of how correct our ideas about the world and the objects in it are.

Today we will talk in detail about skepticism, consider its main ideas, list its most famous supporters, find out why it is criticized, and examine how it differs from agnosticism.

What is skepticism?

In simple terms, skepticism is a direction in philosophy that considers doubt to be the main principle of thinking. In particular, skepticism questions the reliability of truth (that is, it denies the ability to confidently assert that the knowledge we have about the world around us corresponds to objective reality).

Skepticism arose in the 4th century BC. Its founder is considered to be the ancient Greek philosopher Pyrrho (approximately 360-275 BC), whose ideas were later developed by Sextus Empiricus (years of life unknown, approximately 2nd-3rd centuries AD).

An interesting feature of skepticism is its tolerance towards any religious and philosophical concepts and views. Supporters of this direction proceed from the fact that no statement can claim to be the only and unshakable truth. At the same time, it is impossible to both affirm something with absolute certainty and deny it.

Notes

Popkin, R.H. "The History of Skepticism from Erasmus to Descartes (ed. 1968); K.L. Staff, Greek Skepticism (1969); M. Burnyatt, ed., The Skeptical Tradition (1983); B. Stroud, The Meaning of Philosophical Skepticism (1984)." Encyclopedia 2.thefreedictionary.com
.
“Philosophical views are usually classified as skeptical if they involve some degree of doubt about claims that are taken for granted elsewhere.” utm.edu
Greco, John (2008). The Oxford Handbook of Skepticism
. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 9780195183214.
"The Definition of SKEPTICISM." www.merriam-webster.com
. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
Matilal 2004C. 52–75. sfn error: no target: CITEREFMatilal2004 (help)
Diogenes Laërtius (Tr. Hicks, 1925), ix.72. See also Bakalis (2005, p. 86)
W. T. Jones, History of Western Philosophy
. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1952, pp. 60 para. 45.
Richard H. Popkin, “Skepticism,” in Paul Edwards, ed., Encyclopedia of Philosophy
, vol. 7. New York: Macmillan, 1967, p. 449.
Allan Hazlett, A Critical Introduction to Skepticism
. London: Bloomsbury, 2014, pp. 4-5.
Popkin, Skepticism, p. 450.
Richard H. Popkin, A History of Skepticism from Erasmus to Spinoza
, eds. ed. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979, chapters 1 and 2.
See, for example, Popkin, History of Skepticism
, p. 210.
Quoted in Popkin, Skepticism, p. 456.
Popkin, Skepticism, p. 456.
Popkin, Skepticism, p. 457.
See, for example, John Greco, ed., The Oxford Handbook of Skepticism
. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.
Mann, Daniel. "Atheism skeptic." Apologetics for today. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
Smith, Peter (2000). A Concise Encyclopedia of the Bahá'í Faith
. Oxford, UK: Oneworld Publications. pp. 266–267. ISBN 1-85168-184-1.
"Scientific Skepticism, CSICOP and Local Groups - CSI." www.csicop.org
. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
"AU 230 Appropriate Professional Care in the Performance of Work." pcaobus.org
. Retrieved April 28, 2022.

Basic ideas of skepticism

The main ideas of skepticism include the following theses:

even if knowledge looks achievable and reliable, it cannot be recognized as such;
both absolute knowledge and any reliable knowledge in general are inaccessible to man (since it was obtained through empirical knowledge, which cannot be considered an absolutely reliable source);
a person does not have access to reliable knowledge about any metaphysical phenomena and objects (God, the world, causality, etc.);
any hypothesis needs to be tested, and no test can be considered sufficient or final;
none of the methods of scientific knowledge can provide reliable knowledge about objective reality;
all knowledge available to mankind is only assumptions and hypotheses that cannot be proven;
the philosopher must refrain from making any final judgments.

Skepticism considers all our knowledge relative and requires its critical rethinking. In this sense, it is opposed to dogmatism - an uncritical way of thinking that is based on dogma. Despite the fact that dogmatism is characteristic primarily of religions, ancient skeptics called all philosophers who put forward and defended any statements as dogmatists.

The science

Main article: Skeptical movement § Scientific skepticism

A scientific or empirical skeptic is one who questions beliefs based on scientific understanding and empirical evidence.

Scientific skepticism can discard beliefs related to supposed phenomena

are not subject to reliable observation and therefore are not systematic or empirically testable. Most scientists, being scientific skeptics, test the reliability of certain types of claims by subjecting them to systematic examination using some type of scientific method.[19] As a result, a number of claims are considered "pseudoscience" if they are found to misapply or ignore fundamental aspects of the scientific method.

Pyrrho's skepticism

The creator of this philosophical movement is considered to be the ancient Greek philosopher Pyrrho (approximately 360-275 BC). He is notable for the fact that, on principle, he did not write books or treatises, so his ideas were preserved only thanks to his students and followers. In particular, his ideas were developed by such thinkers as Aenesidemus, Agrippa and Sextus Empiricus.

Ancient skeptics identified the teachings of Pyrrho and skepticism, and in their works the words “skeptical” and “Pyrrhonian” were often used as synonyms. In some cases this created confusion, since not all of Pyrrho's ideas were associated exclusively with skepticism.

Today we have an idea of ancient skepticism mainly thanks to the works of Sextus Empiricus. He described in detail the ideas of Pyrrho, Timon, Carneades, Aenesidemus and other supporters of this teaching.

Pyrrho believed that a philosopher is a person striving for happiness, the achievement of which requires calm calm, the absence of all anxiety and suffering. To achieve this state, you need to find answers to 3 questions:

What are things and what properties do they have?
How should we treat them?
What will such an attitude give us?

Pyrrho himself believed that attempts to find reliable answers to these questions would never be successful, and therefore could not lead to happiness. Therefore, he suggested answering them as follows:

We can't know this.
We must refrain from judging things.
By intentionally suspending judgment, you can avoid anxiety.

Thus, he believed that philosophical happiness could be achieved by denying the very possibility of knowledge and understanding of the nature of things. The state of peace that arises due to the renunciation of knowledge was positioned by Pyrrho as the highest degree of bliss and called “ataraxia.” He himself, and after him other skeptics, condemned the desire for reliable knowledge, considering it a source of anxiety and suffering.

Skepticism of Sextus Empiricus

Sextus Empiricus is an ancient Greek physician and philosopher who lived in the 2nd-3rd centuries AD (there is no reliable data on his place of birth and years of life). This is the most famous of Pyrrho's followers, famous, in particular, for the book "Pyrrho's Propositions", which today remains an important work for people studying philosophy.

In his works, he outlined the methodology of skeptical doubt, which was based on a critical understanding of the accumulated knowledge in the field of philosophy and other natural sciences of that time. In addition, Sextus Empiricus touched upon the question of the existence of gods. Comparing religion with atheism, he came to the conclusion that neutral skepticism was the most reasonable position.

It is worth noting that atheism, like any religion, contradicts the basic idea of skepticism (nothing can be proven or disproved unambiguously). But the Soviet philosopher Veniamin Boguslavsky, studying the works of the Empiricist, noted that he was clearly inclined towards atheism, since he criticized religious views twice as often as atheistic ones.

In his works, Sextus Empiricus shows that skepticism is an independent direction in philosophy and cannot be confused with others. The reason is that any other direction recognizes some entities and denies others. Skepticism simultaneously admits and questions all entities.

Sources

A Greek-English Lexicon
, Henry George Liddell and Robert Scott, revised and expanded by Sir Henry Stuart Jones with the assistance of Roderick Mackenzie, Clarendon Press, Oxford, UK, 1940. Online, perseus.tufts.edu.
Buchvarov Panayot, Skepticism about the External World
(Oxford University Press, 1998).
Daniels, M.D., D.; Price, Ph.D. (2000), The Basic Enneagram
, New York: HarperCollins
Richard Henigswald, Die Skepsis in Philosophie und Wissenschaft
, 1914, new edition (ed. and introduction by Christian Benne and Thomas Schirren), Göttingen: Edition Ruprecht, 2008, ISBN 978-3-7675-3056-0
Keaton, Morris T., "Skepticism", pp. 277–278 in Dagobert D. Runes (ed.), Dictionary of Philosophy
, Littlefield, Adams and Company, Totowa, New Jersey, 1962.
Le Morvan, P. (March 2011). "Healthy Skepticism and Practical Wisdom" (PDF). Logos and episteme
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Institute of Economic and Social Research. 2
(1):87–102. Doi:10.5840/logos-epsteme20112151. ISSN 2069-0533. Archived (PDF) from the original, September 4, 2022.
Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language, Second Edition, Unabridged
, W. A. Neilson, T. A. Knott, P. W. Carhart (eds.), G. & C. Merriam Company, Springfield, Massachusetts, 1950.

History of the development of skepticism

As noted above, skepticism originated in Ancient Greece and Pyrrho is considered its founder. Later, his ideas were developed by such thinkers as Heraclitus, Aenesidemus, Agrippa, Sextus Empiricus and other famous ancient philosophers. Socrates, in particular, agreed with many ideas of skepticism, although he was not a skeptic.

The reason for the emergence of skepticism was that ancient philosophers were faced with the problem of subjective knowledge , which depended on individual characteristics of perception. At the same time, there were a large number of philosophical movements based on conflicting ideas and theories. Along with this, there was a religion that excluded doubts and offered to accept unfounded dogmas on faith.

All these contradictions led thinkers to the problem of circular proof, which can be expressed in three theses:

Any statement is based on other statements.
None of the statements can be considered irrefutable.
The choice of starting point for constructing a logical proof also requires justification.

These three theses represent a vicious circle that casts doubt on whether the truth can be established at all. Thus, ancient thinkers had two options: either to completely exclude the possibility of accumulating reliable knowledge, or to soften the requirements for truth. They believed that the most reasonable approach would be to adopt skepticism as a criterion of rationality, guided by which optimal decisions can be made.

By the way, the problem of circular proof has not disappeared anywhere and continues to exist in modern philosophy, being its constant and integral element.

Taking this approach, ancient skeptics proposed observing laws, taking care of one's own health and enjoying life, satisfying one's physical needs and desire for knowledge. This approach turned out to be especially useful for the development of ancient medicine, which thanks to it acquired the first features of evidence-based science. It is worth noting that similar approaches then appeared in India, China and the Middle East.

The Middle Ages were not a particularly favorable period for skepticism. All of Europe was under the strong influence of religion, and therefore unquestioning faith in the truth of church dogmas was welcomed, and any doubts were prohibited. The ideas of skeptics were again in demand during the Renaissance, when the authority of religion was replaced by the authority of knowledge and reason. Skepticism has again become one of the main driving forces in the development of science.

In modern philosophy, the concept of skepticism was revised. Now it was seen as a direction that significantly expanded the possibilities of knowledge and could eliminate any existing contradictions. The main representatives of modern skepticism were Francisco Sanchez, Michel de Montaigne and David Hume.

Everyday concept

In everyday life, we often use the words “skeptic” and “sceptical” to talk about a person who is not inclined to take other people’s word for it, in other words, about a person who cannot be convinced of something without providing confirmation and evidence.

Children's knowledge of the world is partly based on skepticism - they cannot take everyone's word for it, because they need to be convinced in practice that the water is wet, the snow is cold, the fire burns, and if you walk without a hat in cold weather, you can catch a cold.

The so-called “ healthy skepticism ” is the basis for safe interaction with the outside world. Common doubt can protect a person from scammers, rash actions, excessive trust, and so on: before giving your consent to participate in any enterprise, it would be reasonable to ask for evidence that what you are undertaking will not harm anyone. On the one hand, this approach can slow down progress, but on the other hand, it works to ensure the reliability of the result.

Skepticism also refers to the principle that causes people to refrain from making categorical statements, as well as the general state of uncertainty or doubt about something. This concept may even be confused with pessimism - after all, it is pessimists who are not ready to blindly believe in a good outcome of any undertaking.

Criticism of skepticism

Historically, the main opponents and critics of skepticism have always been the Stoics. Skeptics pointed out to all scientists that their knowledge is subjective and cannot be proven in any way. Their main argument in the debate was the statement “Knowledge requires confidence, and your teaching cannot give such confidence.”

The Stoics used this thesis, finding a logical contradiction in it. They asked: “If all knowledge requires certainty, then how can you yourself know and claim it ?” This question points to a real logical contradiction, allowing skepticism to be criticized even now.

Skepticism is also blamed for the fact that thanks to it, Christianity spread throughout the world and became the dominant religion. The fact is that it was the skeptics who were the first to widely criticize the polytheistic religions that dominated the world during Antiquity. They made people doubt their faith in the ancient gods, but offered nothing in return, and Christianity appeared at just the right moment to fill the vacated niche.

How is skepticism different from agnosticism?

Essentially, agnosticism arose from skepticism, so there is much in common between the two schools of thought. And yet they cannot be identified or combined, since there are a number of fundamental differences. Agnosticism assumes that human knowledge is limited, but does not deny the possibility of a reliable understanding of how accurately existing knowledge corresponds to reality.

Skepticism comes from the fact that it is impossible to reliably distinguish reality from fiction. All our knowledge was obtained through unreliable means of sensory cognition, which means it can be unreliable, and there is no way to verify it. If agnosticism considers our cognitive abilities to be limited, then skepticism generally excludes the possibility of assessing with any accuracy the reliability of knowledge obtained empirically.

Everyday skepticism

Regarding skepticism in everyday life, a purely philosophical approach can be considered basic, which recommends doubting the reliability of knowledge. Even what was recognized by authoritative scientific circles! However, we are not talking about complete denial or unwillingness to recognize the achievements of scientists.

On the contrary, the concept allows one to conduct unique research and achieve new results in areas that were once thought to be “fully studied.” This is a very valuable property of skepticism - the ability for introspection and self-improvement, which helps to avoid stagnation.

Unfortunately, at the philistine level, skepticism often turns into smug disbelief . The person takes the position of an unbeliever and refuses to accept any arguments, calling his behavior “an expansion of cognitive experience.” But doesn’t doubting the truth of any judgment contradict itself?