Knowing and Believing: An Interview with Damaris Villarreal on the Subject of Knowledge

Hannah Clark Introduction to Philosophy PHIL 101 (07) February 8, 2014

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Interview Dorm rooms are not usually conducive for a neutral interview on deep philosophical topics, but I made mine the exception. I cleaned and tidied, then lit some soft lamps and set out tea and coffee before greeting my interviewee at the door. Damaris Villarreal, a sophomore classmate, was willing to participate in the interview, though she confessed she was not overly familiar with the topic of epistemology. We had arranged over the phone to meet on a quiet Thursday evening. We sat across from each other at a small table, my laptop open but unobtrusive. I had prepared about ten questions, including epistemologys Big Questions and several in-depth queries posed by various philosophers and skeptics. I explained to Damaris that there were no right or wrong answers, simply her own. However, I encouraged her to consider each question carefully and occasionally prompted her for clarification of her personal grasp of a particular concept. Our session concluded when we reached the forty-five minute time limit. I asked first of all if she believed in objective truth (which she did) and continued by asking how, what, and how much we can know. Damaris believed it was possible to know all things though experienceeven God is intrinsically knowable through experience of the Holy Spiritbut we can never know everything about a subject because we never stop learning (i.e. experiencing, researching). What we can know, she affirmed, is the essence of something the core. When I asked her to explain what the essence was, she described it in the analogy of an applethe essence of the apple is its seed, from which more apples grow. Likewise, the essence of some knowledge is its fundamental concept, to which the rest of the subject relates.

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Damaris considered sensory experience reliable because it was acquired firsthand, while actual comprehension might come from additional research or the connection of ideas within ones mind. Moreover, the arguments against necessary connection and certain knowledge as proposed by David Hume and John Locke, respectively, were harmful to ascribe to. Sometimes things seem uncertain because they have not been directly experienced, Damaris conceded, but even in science, though no one has seen the nucleus of an atom, all the other information concludes that it is real. Without certainty, Damaris thought, life would have little meaning. Finally, Damaris assumed that her belief system needed to be supported by strong, fundamental beliefs. When asked how she could rely on one of these beliefs if it was challenged, she responded that an experience could not be taken away. Though she might not have a perfect answer to the challenge and would possibly question her past experience, she would not simply stop believing. Analysis My interview with Damaris focused primarily on how knowledge was acquired and justified. I found Damaris experience-based approach to knowledge very similar to the view of epistemological empiricism, which claims that all knowledge . . . is ultimately derived from experience.1 Empirical knowledge, as explained by seventeenth-century empiricist John Locke, is discovered through two processes called Sensation and Reflection, in which physical

Norman Geisler and Paul Feinberg, Introduction to Philosophy (Michigan: Baker Books, 1980), 114.

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sensations like seeing, touching, and tasting acquire various ideas like shape and texture while mental reflection combines these ideas to produce totally new concepts.2 However, Damaris also recognized that experience and reason alone were not capable of providing all knowledge. In agreement with what Christian professors Norman Geisler and Paul Feinberg refer to as the logic of authoritarianism, Damaris included faith as an important factor for knowledge.3 By using outside authoritative sources that Damaris had faith in, she could gain better knowledge by inquiry to understand exactly what she and others have experienced. Damaris special brand of knowing appears very inclusive by its combination of experience with faith along with its reliance on credible external sources. Though perhaps unconsciously, Damaris definitely understood the fact that we as humans are confined in time and space, unable to know about past or present events that occur outside of our personal experience. These restrictions require us to appeal beyond ourselves for more knowledge on the workings of the world. By following a reasonable strategy of evaluating outside sources, we can be fairly certain that what we learn from them is true and will not feel inclined to question them further without just cause. However, if a strongly held belief is questioned, we are expected to intelligently support its credibility. Damaris readily sided with the modest foundationalism approach as the best method for justifying beliefs. According to The Love of Wisdom, [A foundationalist] believes that a persons belief system, if it is to be justified, must be grounded on foundational beliefs that are immune, or at least resistant, to doubt.4 These foundational or basic beliefs are generally justified through experience and are considered perfectly acceptable unless reasonable doubt can
2 3

Steve Cowan and James Spiegel, The Love of Wisdom (Michigan: B&H Publishing Group, 2009), 54. Geisler and Feinberg, Introduction to Philosophy, 104. 4 Cowan and Spiegel, The Love of Wisdom, 82

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be presented to force the believer to reconsider.5 Basic beliefs support and justify the rest of the belief system, which is composed of non-basic beliefs that allow for logical deductions to be drawn from the explanations and inferences of the believers experiences.6 Thus, Damaris is able to reflect on her prior experience and research to draw rational conclusions. I was very impressed with Damaris approach to epistemology. Her views on knowledge join together in a fairly coherent and uncomplicated system. Damaris used personal experience both to gain knowledge and to justify it, but supplemented her experience with further insight attained via external sources and faith. I do believe that in order for her belief system to work well, Damaris knowledge must be considered in degrees of certainty: absolute, reasonable, and more probable than not.7 In fact, Damaris accounted for this condition in her interview when she related certainty of knowledge to conclusions drawn from available information. While perhaps none of her information can be fully justified in such that it is undeniably absolute, her information does satisfy the requirements of knowledge beyond a reasonable doubt. All in all, her account for knowledge is intelligently construed and provides a solid base on which she can rest her daily decisions, personal education, and religious faith.

5 6

W. Jay Wood, Epistemology: Becoming Intellectually Virtuous (Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1998), 98-99 Cowan and Spiegel, The Love of Wisdom, 84 7 Ibid., 62

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Bibliography Cowan, Steven, and James Spiegel. The Love of Wisdom: A Christian Introduction to Philosophy. Michigan: B&H Publishing Group, 2009. Geisler, Norman, and Paul Feinberg. Introduction to Philosophy: A Christian Perspective. Michigan: Baker Books, 1980. Wood, W. Jay. Epistemology: Becoming Intellectually Virtuous. Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1998.