Philosophy Toolkit: Knowledge

The commonly accepted definition of knowledge, according to the Philosophy Toolkit, is "justified true belief".  However, the Toolkit does not provide a concrete definition of the term 'justified' as it is used here.  Justification seems, to me, a subjective sort of word, particularly when it is being utilised in such a definitive, logical context as this.  Without further clarification, people could argue that they know a deity exists because they have had dreams about one, or know that one does not exist because there is no empirical evidence to suggest other wise.  They could claim to know that someone is going to act a certain way, because they believe that their prior experiences watching this person's actions are enough to justify that belief - yet clearly, this is not an example of knowledge but of educated guessing.

As my current philosophical standpoint is considerably fallibilistic, I do not think that there is any justification sufficient to constitute a one hundred percent certainty, and as such no one can actually know anything.  However, for the purposes of this toolkit, a less skeptical idea of justification might be appropriate.  Whatever the definition, it might be helpful to present it in the section on knowledge.

Introduction

Hello, fellow bloggers and readers.  My name is Avery, as you can see elsewhere on this blog.  I'm a freshman here at MCLA, and come from Groton, Massachusetts.  I have always been highly interested in philosophy, and as such have chosen to major in it.  Music is also a great interest of mine; I play the pedal harp, the electric guitar, the piano, and a number of other instruments, and enjoy listening to a wide variety of music, from classical to metal to Celtic folk.  I do compose some music, but am not as yet proficient enough at that to try presenting my compositions in a formal setting.  My one sibling, a younger sister, also plays and writes music.

I am an almost-vegetarian, for ethical reasons rather than for my health; the reason I cannot call myself a complete vegetarian is that I still do consume shellfish.  In regards to religion, I am an agnostic.  My literary taste, similarly to my musical taste, varies widely; I like many contemporary authors (Terry Pratchett, Meredith Ann Pierce, Garth Nix, etc.) and also older authors (Edgar Allen Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, Franz Kafka, etc.).  I like reading mythology, drawing, and attempting to psychoanalyse people, and am a black belt in Uechi-ryu karate.

That is all I can think of off the top of my head which might be of interest.  I look forward to being able to participate in this class and get to know all of you better through discussions in it!

P.S. For anyone interested, the admittedly rather peculiar title of my blog comes from a book by Terry Pratchett.