RI JTB Package 2023

RI KI Y5 Knowledge & Justification: JTB 1 KI Package Y5, T1 Knowledge and Justification Contents - Justified True Belief: the three conditions - Russell on True Belief - Reply to JTB: The Gettier Problem ________________________ Tutor: Mr Jarrod Lee

RI KI Y5 Knowledge & Justification: JTB 2 Justified True Belief Exercise This exercise will take us through a series of class activities to show the conditions a proposition would have to meet in order to be called knowledge. In other words, if I want to say that I know that X, where X is any proposition, what would X require? 1) The Belief Condition For each of the following situations, discuss why we cannot speak of them as cases of knowledge. a) Suppose that Linh has a brother in Vietnam whom he hasn’t seen or spoken to in months and that his brother is healthy and well. Suppose also that Vietnam was in Jan this year hit by SARS and that Linh hasn’t been in touch with his family for a month because the phone networks and mail systems are down. Why can Linh not say that he knows his brother is well? Would Linh accept it if attempting to ease him, you said, ‘I’m sure your brother is well.’ b) Suppose Mother Theresa has been brought up as a Christian and for that reason has always believed in God, and that there is in fact a God. Why may some people not want to say that they share Mother Theresa’s knowledge that there is a God? Now try to formulate a requirement for us to say that I know that X: Try to think of counter-examples in which the above requirement you have just formulated may not really be necessary for knowledge.

RI KI Y5 Knowledge & Justification: JTB 3 2) The Truth condition We can build further requirements for knowledge if we learn from history. The 2 theories below have more or less been debunked today. Flat Earth Theory Main Claim: the Earth is flat, like a plane or disc Reasons given What are some reasons that suggest otherwise? 1) Rivers flow for hundreds of miles without falling more than a few feet (e.g. the Nile) but if the Earth is round, it should fall more than a few feet. 2) Scripture: “I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the Earth” (Rev. 7:1). 3) If the Earth were round, then the people on the other side are walking upside down. Miasma Malaria Theory Main Claim: Malaria is caused by bad air, emanating from rotting organic matter [Note: “miasma”= “pollution” in ancient Greek, “malaria”= “bad air” in medieval Italian Reasons given What are some reasons that suggest otherwise? 1) You can catch malaria without touching the sick 2) Where malaria was found, bad air could be found 3) Bad air arrives during mosquito seasons Why can we today not say that the flat-earth theorists knew that the earth is flat, or that Miasma theorists knew the cause of Malaria? What does