The sceptical challenge

by Ruth Weintraub

What do we know? Are any of our beliefs reasonable? Scepticism gives a pessimistic reply to these important epistemological questions: we don't know anything, it replies; none of our beliefs are reasonable. Can these seemingly paradoxical claims be more than an intellectual curiosity? And if so, can they be refuted? Ruth Weintraub answers yes to both these questions. The sceptical challenge is a formidable one, and should be confronted, not dismissed. The theoretical and practical difficulties it presents - it seems self-defeating and the consistently sceptical life cannot be lived - are in fact superficial. But any refutation of scepticism must draw on philosophy rather than science; it will founder if it attempts to eliminate traditional epistemology in favour of cognitive science. Accordingly, Weintraub focuses on the sceptical arguments of Sextus Empiricus, Hume and Descartes and challenges them on philosophical grounds. This strategy allows her to rebut the sceptical arguments one