Abstract

At the heart of Alston's project is the notion of epistemic circularity. An argument is circular in the most direct way if it uses as a premise a statement it sets out to prove, but it is epistemically circular if it requires what it sets out to prove as justification for one of its premises. So it is with most of the arguments Alston considers here. For example, "track record" arguments try to show that sense perception is reliable by citing our successful use of it in prediction and control. But our belief that we do predict and control things is itself based on sense perception.