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Determining Truth

The document discusses various philosophical concepts related to truth, including: - Truth is difficult to determine definitively and philosophers have proposed different theories to understand it. - The correspondence theory holds that a proposition is true if it corresponds to facts in reality, but it faces challenges regarding language ambiguities and circular reasoning. - The coherence theory states that a proposition is true if it coheres with other accepted propositions, though this can also fall victim to circularity. - Pragmatism defines truth as whatever works or has practical consequences, such as a belief that helps one navigate the world successfully.

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Jenny Rose Goyenechea Pascua
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952 views

Determining Truth

The document discusses various philosophical concepts related to truth, including: - Truth is difficult to determine definitively and philosophers have proposed different theories to understand it. - The correspondence theory holds that a proposition is true if it corresponds to facts in reality, but it faces challenges regarding language ambiguities and circular reasoning. - The coherence theory states that a proposition is true if it coheres with other accepted propositions, though this can also fall victim to circularity. - Pragmatism defines truth as whatever works or has practical consequences, such as a belief that helps one navigate the world successfully.

Uploaded by

Jenny Rose Goyenechea Pascua
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Determining Truth

Tr u t h i s t h e c e n t e r i n t h e s t u d y o f
philosophy
 A p e r s o n’s q u e s t fo r t r u t h i s t h e
r e a s o n w hy p h i l o s o p hy ex i s t s.
 B u t t r u t h i s a s e l u s i ve a s e ve r, w h i c h
made philosophers agree that there
is no definite measure in determining
the truth.
 T h e m e t h o d s i n p h i l o s o p hy i n vo l ve a s t ro n g
sense of commitment to reason as a source
o f k n ow l e d ge i n a r r i v i n g t h e t r u t h .

 P h i l o s o p h i c a l p ro c e s s e s a r e d e s i g n e d t o
d e t e r m i n e way s o f k n ow i n g a n d f i n d i n g
out the truth in all phenomena of human
ex p e r i e n c e .
Truth, Knowledge and proposition

 Truth lies at the heart of any inquiry. It is a


fact that has been verified.
 Knowledge is simple data that comes from the
outside that pass to our senses. It must be
truthful to gain validity and acceptance.
 Propositions are statements about the world or
reality which may or may not carry truth.
 T h e r e a r e s t a t e m e n t s, h owe ve r, t h a t a r e
n o t e v i d e n t l y o r i m m e d i a t e l y k n ow n t o b e
t r u e a n d t h ey a r e c a l l e d C L A I M S . T h ey
r e q u i r e f u r t h e r ex a m i n a t i o n t o e s t a b l i s h
w h e t h e r i t i s t r u e o r f a l s e.
What is truth and why is it important?
 Knowledge is the clear awareness and
understanding of something. It is the product of
questions that allow for clear answers provided by
facts.
 What we know is what is observable or evident in
the real world.
 Propositions which are observed to be real or
truthful are considered FACTS.
How do we know if something is true?
 Philosophers emphasize the importance of belief as
a basis for determining truth.
 We assume that everything we know about this
world is true but philosophers who pondered upon
the origins of knowledge doubted everything that
there is to know about themselves and the world. In
doing so, they were able to better understand the
means by which humans gain knowledge and
determine the truth about everything.
 It is said that there are instances when we have
t o u n l e a r n s o m e t h i n g s o t h a t w e m a y l e a r n a n e w.
P h i l o s o p h e r s q u e s t i o n e d w h a t t h ey k n e w a n d
e v e n a n a l y z e d t h e i r m e t h o d s o f k n ow i n g i n o r d e r
to understand themselves and the wor ld m uc h
b e t t e r.
 Doubt has a very impor tant purpose in
philosophy as it drives our desire to discover
tr uth. Nothing is taken as tr ue unless there is
efficient reason and evidence to prove that.
Something is true if…

1. It can be justified or proven through the use


of one’s senses.
2. It is based on facts.
3. It is a product of agreement or consensus.
4. It can be applied in real life (tested and
verified)
Theories of truth
S i n c e t r u t h i s a va g u e c o n c e p t ,
p h i l o s o p h e r s fo r m u l a t e d s eve r a l t h e o r i e s
to understand it.

1. The Correspondence Theory


2. Coherence Theory
3. Pragmatic Theory
Correspondence Theory

 The dominant theory, especially popular with


empiricists
 Correspondence Theory proposes that a
proposition is true if it corresponds to the facts
 Example: “The apple is sitting on the table”
can be true only if the apple is in fact sitting
on the table.
 Also leaves room for the idea that “true” may be
applied to people (a “true friend”) as well as to
thoughts
 Two main versions of Correspondence Theory:
object- based, and fact-based (currently
prominent)
Correspondence Theory…

Strengths Weaknesses
1. Simplicity 1. Difficulties pertaining to
2. Appeal to common sense linguistics
2. Falls prey to circular reasoning
3. Awkwardness in application
to mathematics
4. Leads to skepticism about the
external world
Correspondence Theory - Strengths
 In order to prove that “It is raining today” is true, according to
the correspondence theory, all one must do is look out the
window and verify that it is in fact raining
 According to Descartes, “I have never had any doubts about
truth, because it seems a notion so transcendentally clear that
nobody can be ignorant of it…the word ‘truth,’ in the strict
sense, denotes the conformity of thought with its object” (‘Letter
to Mersenne: 16 October 1639,’ The Philosophical Writings of
Descartes, vol. 3 )
Correspondence Theory - Weaknesses
1. Linguistic Issues
 How can a word or sentence correspond to things that
are nothing like language?
 Some philosophers claim that asserting that a word
corresponds to an actual object in reality is rather like
comparing apples and oranges
 Language is by nature ambiguous – a word for an
object differs from culture to culture, and even from
person to person
 F o r ex a m p l e, w e t , n o n - f r o z e n p r e c i p i t a t i o n t h a t
falls from the sky is called “rain” in English, “la
pluie” in Frenc h, and “regen” in Ger man .

 I n a d d i t i o n , e v e n w i t h i n a l a n g u a g e, o n e p e r s o n
may call a light rain a “drizzle” while another
m i g h t c a l l i t a “ s h ow e r ”

 Thus, this ambiguity can cause issues when


i l l u s t r a t i n g h ow a w o r d c o r r e s p o n d s t o a
par ticular object or event
Correspondence Theory - Weaknesses
2. Circular Reasoning
 Correspondence Theory claims that a proposition is true
if it corresponds to the facts
 What is a fact?
» A fact is, by definition, a true proposition
 So a proposition is true if it corresponds another
proposition that is true
» The facts must also be proven to be true – by
showing that they correspond to other facts
Correspondence Theory - Weaknesses
2. Mathematical Applications
 Correspondence Theory may appear to make sense
when it applied to language, but it runs into difficulty
when applied to the truths of mathematics
 What “factual reality” does the proposition 5+2=7
correspond to?
 We might point to practical examples, such as 5 pencils plus 2
pencils leaves you with 7 pencils
 While that is true, the original proposition says nothing about
pencils – and we certainly recognize that there is no such
object as ‘5’ or ‘2’ in the real world.
The world of numbers appears to be too
theoretical to be accurately explained by
the Correspondence Theory
Coherence Theory
 Preferred by many idealists
 For idealists, reality is like a collection of beliefs, which
makes the coherence theory particularly attractive
 The coherence theory of truth states that if a proposition
coheres with all the other propositions taken to be true, then
it is true.
 The truth of a belief can only consist in its coherence with
other beliefs; truth comes in degrees
Coherence Theory…

Strengths Weaknesses
1. Makes sense out of the 1. Like the Correspondence theory,
idea of mathematical the Coherence theory falls prey
truths to circular reasoning
Strengths
Makes sense out of the idea of mathematical truths
Ex: (5+2=7) is true because: 7=7 ; 1+6=7 ;
21/3=(2x3)+1; are all true
Weaknesses
Makes sense out of the idea of mathematical truths
Ex: Proposition A is true because propositions
B and C are true. But how do you know B is
true? Because proposition A and C are true.
But what external evidence is there to
support the truth of any of these
propositions?
Pragmatism
William James is considered the father of pragmatism
However, in order to understand James’ presentation of pragmatism we must draw
a distinction between meaning and truth.
– A sentence is meaningful only if believing it would make a practical
difference in your life as opposed to believing some alternative to
it.
• Example: Proposition A: There is a gaping hole in the middle of the
cafeteria.
– Would believing this proposition to be true make a practical difference in your
life?
» It is safe to assume that one would take a path that avoids the middle of the
cafeteria if one believed that there was a gaping hole there.
Pragmatism, cont’d…
 The previous example is an illustration of a meaningful
proposition – belief in it (or lack thereof) makes a practical
difference in one’s life.

 What about truth?


 Only meaningful sentences can be true or false
 James’ take on both the coherence and correspondence
theories of truth is that they are not competing theories,
but rather different tools to be applied to beliefs to see if
those beliefs work
Pragmatism, cont’d…
“Ideas (which themselves are but parts of our
experience) become true just insofar as they help us to
get into satisfactory relations with other parts of our
experience,…truth in our ideas means their power to
‘work’” – William James, Pragmatism (49)
The key thing for James and pragmatism
is that of an idea “working”
• If believing that there is a gaping hole in the
middle of the cafeteria prevents you from falling
and breaking a leg, or making a fool of yourself
in front of that cute boy from chapel, then that
belief works. It is “true.”

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