Ancient Epistemology

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title Ancient Epistemology
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Lloyd P. Gerson
SeriesKey Themes in Ancient Philosophy
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:190
Dimensions(mm): Height 228,Width 152
Category/GenreWestern philosophy - Ancient to c 500
Philosophy - epistemology and theory of knowledge
ISBN/Barcode 9780521691895
ClassificationsDewey:121
Audience
Professional & Vocational
Tertiary Education (US: College)

Publishing Details

Publisher Cambridge University Press
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publication Date 12 February 2009
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

This is the first title in the Key Themes in Ancient Philosophy series, which provides concise books, written by major scholars and accessible to non-specialists, on important themes in ancient philosophy which remain of philosophical interest today. In this book, Professor Gerson explores ancient accounts of the nature of knowledge and belief from the Presocratics up to the Platonists of late antiquity. He argues that ancient philosophers generally held a naturalistic view of knowledge as well as of belief. Hence, knowledge was not viewed as a stipulated or semantically determined type of belief but was rather a real or objectively determinable achievement. In fact, its attainment was identical with the highest possible cognitive achievement, namely wisdom. It was this naturalistic view of knowledge at which the ancient Skeptics took aim. The book concludes by comparing the ancient naturalistic epistemology with some contemporary versions.

Author Biography

Lloyd Gerson is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Toronto. He has published widely on ancient philosophy including most recently Aristotle and Other Platonists (2005) and Knowing Persons. A Study in Plato (2004).