BHA: Mainstream Epistemology

[Ruth Groff <rgroff@xxxxxxxx>]

Hi all,

I agree with Marsh (except about the concept of "alethic truth," which I think is an unfortunate misnomer for "real essence").

But I really just wanted to note that in philosophy-speak, there is a distinction to be made between (a) criteria of justification and (b) the concept of truth.  The issues are related, obviously, but people sometimes (usefully, in my view) talk about them one at a time.

Marsh, you seem to be concerned most with justification.  We had a big discussion about this some years ago; Colin and Doug, as I recall, were of a similar mind about there not being any a priori criteria with which to assess the relative explanatory power of competing theories.  I still think that on justification Bhaskar ends up sticking what he said in RTS -- that the best theory is the one that the practicing experts in a field agree is the best one.  In DPF you see it in the notion of "referential detachment" -- achieved, again, via epistemic consensus.

I'm going to have to let Marsh continue to carry forward on this one, though -- I'm leaving town in a day and am unbelievably pressed.

Warmly,
Ruth



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