RDillercsbhamacuk wwwcsbhamacuk ard 9 March 2010 Note This is the handout distributed during the talk I delivered at the March 2010 conference Thomas Reid From His Time to Ours held in Aberdeen and Glasgow It should not be considered to be a 64257nis ID: 72228
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2ReningReid'sPrincipleofCredulity2AnAccountofTestimonyInspiredbyThomasReid2.1IntroductionJustovertenyearsago,Ibecameinterestedintestimonyand,fortunately,cameacrossasum-maryofReid'sviewssoonafterwards.ThatledmetoSection24ofChapterVIofAnInquiryintotheHumanMindonthePrinciplesofCommonSense(1764):ThewiseandbenecentAuthorofNature,whointendedthatweshouldbesocialcreatures,andthatweshouldreceivethegreatestandmostimportantpartofourknowledgebytheinformationofothers,hath,forthesepurposes,implantedinournaturestwoprinciplesthattallywitheachother.Therstoftheseprinciplesis,apropensitytospeaktruth,andtousethesignsoflanguage,soastoconveyourrealsentiments.Thisprinciplehasapowerfuloperation,eveninthegreatestliars;forwheretheylieonce,theyspeaktruthahundredtimes.Truthisalwaysuppermost,andisthenaturalissueofthemind.Itrequiresnoartortraining,noinducementortemptation,butonlythatweyieldtoanaturalimpulse.Lying,onthecontrary,isdoingviolencetoournature;andisneverpractised,evenbytheworstmen,withoutsometemptation.Onthefollowingpagehepresentstheprinciplewhichgovernsourresponsetotestimony:AnotheroriginalprincipleimplantedinusbytheSupremeBeing,isadispo-sitiontocondeintheveracityofothers,andtobelievewhattheytellus.Thisisthecounterparttotheformer;andasthatmaybecalledtheprincipleofveracity,weshall,forwantofapropername,callthistheprincipleofcredulity.Itisun-limitedinchildren,untiltheymeetwithinstancesofdeceitandfalsehood:anditretainsaveryconsiderabledegreeofstrengththroughlife.2.2ThePrincipleofCredulityTheprincipleofcredulityseemstometobebasicallycorrect.Wedohaveapowerfulinnatetendencytoaccepttestimony.Bysayingthatthispropensityisunlimitedinchildrenand,thus,limitedinadults,Reidacknowledgesthatitcanberesistedoroverridden.However,principlesaredifferentfromdispositions,tendenciesandpropensities;thesethingsshouldnotbeconated.TheseobservationsleadmetothefollowingrenementofReid'sviews:Peopledohaveastrongtendencytoaccepttestimony;theyrespondtotestimonyasifthatresponseweregovernedbythedefeasibleacquisitionrule:`Acceptothers'assertions.'Itisthefactthatthisruleisdefeasiblethatmakesitinteresting.Furthermore,implicitinwhatReidsaysistheobservationthatoverridingfactorsarelearnt.Thishasatleasttwoconsequences:(1)Thewayinwhichpeoplerespondtopropositionalinformationchangesovertime.(2)Noteverybodynecessarilyrespondstothesamepieceofpropositionalinformationinthesameway.2.3ThePrincipleofVeracityIalsothinkthattheprincipleofveracityisbasicallycorrect,butitisnotwhatweneedinordertoaccountforthespreadofpropositionalinformation.Forthatweneedtoseethesocialprac-ticeofassertioninteractingwithourtendencytoaccepttestimony:Twomechanismsaccount 4ReningReid'sPrincipleofCredulitytraditiontondanswerstothequestionsthatinterestedthem,theseearlyscientistsputtheirfaithinwhattheythemselvescouldobservegoingonaroundthem.Thenewexperimentalapproachwasaccompaniedbyanewepistemology,empiricism,thatsawallknowledgeasbeingderivedfromsenseexperience.Baconwasthechampionofthisnewapproachandhebelievedthattherigorousapplicationofthescienticmethodwouldeventuallyyieldeverythingthatwasworthknowingabouttheuniverse.HisideasledtotheformationoftheRoyalSocietyinEngland.ThiswasestablishedatGreshamCollegein1660andgivenaRoyalCharterin1662.Itsmottowas,andstillis,nulliusinverba(takenobody'swordforit).Inotherwords,inordertolearnthesecretsofnatureyouneedtocarryoutexperiments,ratherthanreadwhathasbeenpreservedintradition.3.2TheRehabilitationofTestimonyCoadymorethananybodyelsehasrehabilitatedthestudyoftestimonyinphilosophy,buthestillonlywantstoputtestimonyonanequalfootingwithperception,memoryandinference.Coady(1992,p.6)writes:Modernepistemologiststirelesslypursuethenatureandroleofmemory,percep-tion,inductiveanddeductivereasoningbutdevotenoanalysisandargumenttotestimonyalthoughprimafacieitbelongsonthislist.Afterallwhenweinquireintothebasisofsomeclaimbyasking:`Whydoyoubelievethat?'or`Howdoyouknowthat?'theanswer`Jonestoldme'canbejustasappropriateas`Isawit'or`Irememberit',`Itfollowsfromthis'or`Itusuallyhappenslikethat'.Iamgoingtoargue,however,fortheprimacyoftestimonyandthepaucityofperceptualknowledge:Ourabilitytomakejudgementsaboutourperceptualenvironmentpresupposesthatweareinpossessionofinformationthatcouldonlyhavebeenacquiredthroughtestimonyandperceptualknowledgeisactuallyveryrare.3.3EmpiricismAsalreadymentioned,empiricismisthetheorythatallknowledgeisderivedfromsenseexpe-rience.However,therearetwolargecategoriesofcounter-examplestotheweakerclaimthatallempiricalknowledgeisderivedfromsenseexperience.Therstconsistsofstatementslike`JimmyPorterisacharacterinLookBackinAnger'and`DesdemonaisthedaughterofBra-bantioinShakespeare'sOthello'.Thesecondcontainsclaimslike`DummettwasinuencedbymathematicalintuitionismwhichwasfoundedbyBrouwer'and`RussellandFregewerelogicists'.Bethatasitmay,byanalysinghowwecometohaveperceptualbeliefsweseethatthestandardapproachismistaken.Dretske(1993,p.333),asdomanyothers,putsforwardthestandardaccountthus:Wecrossintersectionswhenweseethelightturngreen,headforthekitchenwhenwesmelltheroastburning,squeezethefruittodetermineitsripeness,andclimboutofbedwhenwehearthealarmring.Ineachcasewecometoknowsomething—thatthelighthasturnedgreen,thattheroastisburning,thatthemelonisoverripe,andthatitistimetogetup—bysomesensorymeans. 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