Knowledge, Belief, and Character: Readings in Contemporary Virtue Epistemology / Edition 1

by Guy Axtell, Alvin Goldman, Ernest Sosa, Hilary Kornblith, John Greco

Overview

There have been many books over the past decade, including outstanding collections of essays, on the topic of the ethical virtues and virtue-theoretic approaches in ethics. But the professional journals of philosophy have only recently seen a strong and growing interest in the intellectual virtues and in the development of virtue-theoretic approaches in epistemology. There have been four single-authored book length treatments of issues of virtue epistemology over the last seven years, beginning with Ernest Sosa's Knowledge in Perspective (Cambridge, 1991), and extending to Linda Zabzebski's Virtue of the Mind (Cambridge, 1996). Weighing in with Jonathan Kvanvig's The Intellectual Virtues and the Life of the Mind (1992), and James Montmarquet's Epistemic Virtue and Doxastic Responsibility (1993), Rowman & Littlefield has had a particularly strong interest in the direction and growth of the field. To date, there has been no collection of articles directly devoted to the growing debate over the possibility and potential of a virtue epistemology. This volume exists in the belief that there is now a timely opportunity to gather together the best contributions of the influential authors working in this growing area of epistemological research, and to create a collection of essays as a useful course text and research source. Several of the articles included in the volume are previously unpublished. Several essays discuss the range and general approach of virtue theory in comparison with other general accounts. What advantages are supposed to accrue from a virtue-based account in epistemology, in handling well-known problems such as "Gettier," and "Evil-Genie"-type problems? Can reliabilist virtue epistemology handle skeptical challenges more satisfactorily than non-virtue-centered forms of epistemic reliabilism? Others provide a needed discussion of relevant analogies and disanalogies between ethical and epistemic evaluation. The readings all contribute

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780847696536
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	04/26/2000
Series:	Studies in Epistemology and Cognitive Theory
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.74(w) x 8.98(h) x 0.55(d)

About the Author

Guy Axtell is professor of philosophy at University of Nevada.

Table of Contents

Part 1 Acknowledgements Part 2 Introduction Part 3 Reliability and Intellectual Virtue Chapter 4 Epistemic Folkways and Scientific Epistemology. Alvin Goldman Chapter 5 Reliabilism and Intellectual Virtue. Ernest Sosa Chapter 6 Three Forms of Virtue Epistemology. Ernest Sosa Chapter 7 Ever Since Descartes. Hilary Kornblith Part 8 Knowledge and Skepticism Chapter 9 Virtue, Skepticism, and Context. John Greco Chapter 10 Supervenience, Virtues, and Consequences. Jonathan Dancy Chapter 11 Sosa on Knowledge, Justification, and "Aptness". Lawrence BonJour Chapter 12 Perspectives in Virtue Epistemology: A Response to Dancy and BonJour. Ernest Sosa Part 13 Responsibility, Motives, and Consequences Chapter 14 From Reabilism to Virtue Epistemology. Linda Zagrebsky Chapter 15 Moral and Epistemic Virtue. Julia Driver Chapter 16 An "Internalist" Conception of Epistemic Virtue. James Montmarquet Chapter 17 Regulating Inquiry: Virtue, Doubt, and Sentiment. Christopher Hookway Part 18 Special Interest Topics in Virtue Theory Chapter 19 Critical Thinking, Moral Integrity, and Citizenship: Teaching for the Intellectual Virtues. Richard Paul Chapter 20 Virtue Theory and the Fact/ Value Problem. Guy Axtell Chapter 21 Epistemic Vice. Casey Swank Chapter 22 Phronesis and Religious Belief. Linda Zagrebski Part 23 Index of Names Part 24 About the Contributors

Editorial Reviews

Axtell has done an excellent job of selecting outstanding examples of the virtue theoretic approach to epistemology. For someone interested in the issue, Axtell's book is a great introduction.

Metapsychology Online

Axtell has done an excellent job of selecting outstanding examples of the virtue theoretic approach to epistemology. For someone interested in the issue, Axtell's book is a great introduction.

Metapsychology Online Reviews

Axtell has done an excellent job of selecting outstanding examples of the virtue theoretic approach to epistemology. For someone interested in the issue, Axtell's book is a great introduction.

Metapsychology