Article/Publication Details

Infallibility about the Self

(Original title: Infallibility about the Self )
Organon F, 2013, vol. 20, No 3, pp. 341-354.
Language: English
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Abstract

On a common formulation, rationalist infallibilism is committed to two main theses: (i) ‘analytic a priori infallibilism’ and (ii) ‘synthetic a priori infallibilism’. According to thesis (i), a relatively wide range of analytic a priori propositions can be infallibly justified. According to thesis (ii), a relatively wide range of synthetic a priori propositions can be infallibly justified. In this paper, I focus on rationalist infallibilism’s second main thesis, what is being called ‘synthetic a priori infallibilism’. I argue that synthetic a priori infallibilism, and by extension rationalist infallibilism, is untenable. In particular, exploring what seems to be the only potentially plausible species of synthetic a priori infallibility, I reject the infallible justification of propositions about the self.

Keywords

Cogito, dubito, infallibility, privileged access, rationalism, self-knowledge

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