Free Bachelor of Philosophy: Knowledge and Skepticism Questions and Answers

Question 1

Descartes was disappointed when he realized that many of the purported truths he had learnt in his boyhood were ______.

Accepted Answer

false.

Answer

René Descartes initiated his philosophical project by systematically doubting all his previous beliefs. He discovered that many of the 'truths' he had accepted since childhood, particularly those based on sensory experience, were unreliable and potentially false. This realization led him to seek a foundation of knowledge that was absolutely certain and indubitable.

Question 2

Descartes asserts that he might actually be _____ for all he knows.

Accepted Answer

dreaming

Answer

In his Meditations, Descartes employs the 'dream argument' to cast doubt on sensory knowledge. He points out that there are no definitive criteria to distinguish waking experiences from dreams, meaning that for all he knows, he could be dreaming right now. This raises the possibility that all his sensory perceptions and the physical world itself might be illusory.

Question 3

Descartes asserts that a bad devil _______

Accepted Answer

could possibly be deceiving him

Answer

Descartes introduces the 'evil demon' or 'malicious demon' hypothesis as a radical skeptical argument. He posits the possibility that an all-powerful, supremely cunning evil demon could be constantly deceiving him, making everything he perceives or believes to be true actually false. This extreme doubt aims to identify any beliefs that remain absolutely immune to deception.

Question 4

Descartes argues against believing in the senses because _____.

Accepted Answer

they sometimes deceive him

Answer

Descartes' method of doubt begins by questioning the reliability of the senses. He observes that his senses have occasionally deceived him (e.g., optical illusions, distant objects appearing small). Since they have proven fallible even once, he concludes that they cannot be fully trusted as a foundation for certain knowledge, leading him to doubt all sensory information.

Question 5

Descartes affirms his identity as _____.

Accepted Answer

a thing that thinks

Answer

Descartes, in his *Meditations*, famously concluded "Cogito, ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am). He realized that even if everything else he perceived was an illusion or deception, the very act of doubting and thinking proved his existence as a thinking substance. Therefore, his fundamental identity was affirmed as a 'thing that thinks,' an undeniable truth amidst his radical skepticism.

PhB Bachelor of Philosophy Practice Test

PhB Bachelor of Philosophy Practice Test

Free Bachelor of Philosophy: Knowledge and Skepticism Questions and Answers