Question

. Provide the traditional analysis of knowledge in terms of necessary and sufficient conditions and provide a Gettier-style counter example to this analysis. Explain what such counter examples tell us about the traditional analysis of knowledge.

Answer 1

Traditional analysis of knowledge in terms of necessary and sufficient conditions

Traditional analysis of knowledge is based in terms of following necessary and sufficient conditions:

(1)The Truth Condition

(2)The Belief Condition

(3)The Justification Condition

Thus the traditional Analysis of Knowledge can be understood from following analysis:
S knows that p iff

1. p is true;
2. S believes that p;
3. S is justified in believing that p.

Provide a Gettier-style counter example to this analysis.

Example: Imagine that we are seeking water on a hot day. We suddenly see water, or so we think. In fact, we are not seeing water but a mirage, but when we reach the spot, we are lucky and find water right there under a rock. Can we say that we had genuine knowledge of water? The answer seems to be negative, for we were just lucky.

Explain what such counter examples tell us about the traditional analysis of knowledge.

Although most agree that each element of the traditional analysis is necessary for knowledge, but they do not seem collectively to be sufficient. There seem to be cases of justified true belief that still fall short of knowledge. As explained in above example, a true belief could be inferred from a justified false belief. But, intuitively, such beliefs cannot be knowledge; it is merely lucky that they are true.

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