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moment we are denying the possibility of his existence--a strange
procedure for avowed empiricists? (3)
If
we recognize that there
is such a thing as common sense knowledge, does this not contain
an implicit admission that we have
some
metaphysical knowledge?
I shall deal with these objections in the order given.
( 1) That all human knowledge is scientific knowledge is a
statement about human beings and about knowledge. It does not
come from any specific science: it simply means that claims to hav–
ing knowledge other than scientific cannot, broadly considered, be
sustained. The statement reflects and summarizes an
historical
fact
about certain bodies of knowledge that have been developed to a
point where the control and mastery they make possible in meeting
problems is open, publicly verifiable and, even though limited, com–
pares favorably with all other methods of solving problems. At the
same time it is not a mere summary of historical fact, but a proposal
to use the term "knowledge" in such a way that all other claims
to knowledge of the world shall be initially assessed .as to validity
in the light of criteria drawn from common sense and from scientific
knowledge universally agreed tOi be highly reliable. It is true that a
certain decision is involved in making such a statement, but the
decision is not arbitrary: one can give good reasons for it or can
point to the historical evidence that makes it a reasonable decision,
show that
in
the past generalizations supported merely by hunches,
guesses, visions, revelations,
a priori
reasoning, have turned out to
be
unreliable, and have failed to predict the occurrences with which
they were concerned. In short, the justification for asserting that all
knowledge is scientific is not a matter of definition but is, rather,
pragmatic: such a view enables us to achieve our ends in the world,
whatever they are, more effectively.
(2) "Ab! but that's just the rub," say critics of this view. "It
begs the question not only about what can or cannot be knowledge
but also about what can or cannot exist. It rules out of the world
what cannot be scientifically verified. It rules out a timeless God,
immortal souls, and many other things people have believed in."
The basic answer to this serious indictment may take various
forms. First, every conception of knowledge must make assumptions
about what constitutes knowledge, and one such set of assumptions
will be incompatible with another. My assumptions about the nature
