How can I say for sure that I know what I know? Sometimes I find myself questioning whether or not we all come to a true consensus of knowing the same things. Like, how do I know for sure my perception of aqua is the same as that guy’s perception of aqua? It leaves me stumped. The only things we know are what we find true in our reality, things we’ve proven to be true by experience.
I know to not touch a sparkler because it’s very hot and hot burns. I learned this from a Fourth of July barbeque when I was six, and my parents thought it was cool for me to play with a sparkler. Yes, this is a very base example because everyone can agree that too much hot burns, but the important thing is that we know it to be true.
When I say experience, I don’t only mean past experiences and memories. It also includes the senses, how we experience things. I don’t agree with Descartes. I feel that his level of skepticism allows too little to be true. I believe my perception to be true to me because it is what I have to go by. I don’t believe that I’m being deceived everyday by my senses. When I see my mom, I recognize her as my mom, and I know that’s my mom.
Knowledge is very subjective. It depends on the individual’s personal experiences to determine what they know. However, there are universal concepts that we’ve come to agree on. Those are true facts.
Senses are a very important part of experience. Our experiences vary from each other's because of our perception.
ReplyDeleteI do believe senses are the only way we come to know the things we know. And you are right about the water. Your perception of water could be completely different from another person's perceptions on water.
ReplyDeleteI think what you are saying is that essentially there is no universal truth. One experience can be taken in so many ways by one person, not to mention many people. And sometimes things that we all think are true in the present are proved wrong in the future. Does that mean that what we thought we knew was knowledge?
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