A System Of Beliefs Term paper

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By D.C. Burch

4Nov1996

Before I can go on to lay out the foundations of my belief system, I think it would be helpful to shed some light on the playing field in which these ideas are to be considered. This playing field is constructed of words and statements, of course, but the precise meaning of "words" and "statements" is often left unclear. I will begin by defining these things as I intend to use them. I will also make a cursury attempt to explain the different types of statements we will encounter, the importance of falsifiablity and the role of faith, in addition to a smattering of other definitions that will become important as we proceed.

Statements

The ultimate building blocks of any philosophical system are statements. A statement is an attempt to communicate that which is true (or perceived to be true) through the symbolic code (words) of a language.

All symbols are, of course, inherently limited. There exist various properties in a symbol's object of reference which cannot be contained within the symbol itself. An obvious example of this is the property of real existence. We may discuss in detail the various properties of a horse and of a unicorn. Considered only from a linguistic standpoint, a horse and unicorn can be assumed to be virtually synonymous. However, the object of the symbol horse possesses the property of real existence while the object of the symbol unicorn does not. The word/symbol horse, though, cannot convey this property because it cannot be contained by the symbol. True knowledge of this property can only be obtained by finding a real horse and touching it, riding it, getting to know it.

The consequence of this is the understanding that there exist incommunicable properties of all real objects. These incommunicable properties are no less real than their communicable counterparts. They simply cannot be conveyed by symbols. Knowledge of these properties can only be obtained by direct experience with the object itself. These properties will hereafter be referred to as existential properties.

Please note, however, that acknowledgment of such existential properties does not negate the reality or real importance of those properties which can be contained and conveyed by the object's symbol. All real objects contain both communicable and existential properties and to disparage consideration of either category is to limit the degree to which we can understand the nature of such objects.

Literal and Analogical Symbolism

Statements will always be either a form of literal symbolism or analogical symbolism. The former occurs when the statement is referring directly to a real object encountered in nature. The latter occurs primarily in religious statements in which the object of reference is a thing outside of nature (supernatural). In such statements we understand that the symbol is drawing a helpful analogy between a natural object and a supernatural object which is neither wholly like, nor wholly unlike the natural object. We understand that, while the two objects are not identical, there are genuine points of similarity. For example, when we say that God is a Father, we do not mean that he is biologically responsible for our existence nor that he is exactly like our own fathers. What we mean is that he is analogous to our fathers in that he is responsible for our existence and that he loves and provides for us in a fashion that is similar to the majority of human fathers.

A Priori vs. Reasonable Statements

Any given statement may be either a priori or reasonable. a prior statements are those statements whose truth value is not dependent on the validity of a logical deduction from other statements. We do not reason to a priori statements. We reason from them. There are no premises which give rise to them. Rather, they are the premises upon which all other deductions are ultimately dependent. Since such statements are not the product of deductive reasoning, their truth value cannot be logically determined. The only method by which we may establish (though never conclusively) the truth value of an a priori statement is by assessing the degree to which reality seems to correspond with valid deductions from such statements.

Reasonable statements, on the other hand, are those statements which are the result of a logical deduction from two or more other statements. These premise statements may be a priori and/or reasonable. The truth value of a reasonable statement is dependent on the validity of the logical deduction and upon the truth value of the premise statements.

At first glance, the unassailability of a priori statements might seem to be a form of intellectual escapism. A closer look, however, will reveal the absolute necessity of admitting such statements. There is no system of thought nor method of inquiry, which does not ultimately find itself confronted by at least one statement that has no more basic premise. If we disallow these statements, then we bereft ourselves of the right to consider any of our conclusions as valid.

However, we should be extremely cautious in positing statements which are a priori. There exist only two categories of a priori statements: mathematical and epistemological (how we know). All other statements are reasonable statements by virtue of the fact that they are ultimately dependent on the premises of our epistemology.

Falsification and Meaningfulness

Any statement which is not a priori must allow for the grounds on which the statement may be proven false, even if such grounds are only theoretical. If the statement is formalized in such a way that no possible grounds for its falsification are conceivable or, if it is formalized in such a way as to disallow consideration of the only conceivable grounds, then the statement is meaningless. This statement about falsification and meaning is a priori and therefore cannot be proven. However, it can be assessed by its correspondence to reality.

"An illustrated book about birds" makes no claim of fact. There is no way to prove it false and it is not meaningful. "I have an illustrated book about birds," however, provides the grounds on which the statement may be falsified. I might not actually possess such a book. Since the grounds for falsification is carried by the statement itself, the statement has meaning. Meaning is simply another way of saying that the statement has an actual value of truth or falsehood whether that be complete truth, complete falsehood, or some degree of both. "I have an illustrated book about birds that has no visibility or mass" disallows the only grounds by which the statement might be falsified and therefore is not a meaningful statement. All of these examples, of course, do not "prove" the original premise about falsifiability and meaningfulness. They merely show that our experience with reality corresponds to the logical deductions of that premise.

Since mathematical statements do not promise to figure significantly in this little jaunt of mine, I will not devote much time to them. I will say, however, that my decision to accept them as a prior is not without reservation. It seems plausible that all mathematical statements are actually reasonable by virtue of the fact that they are dependent on the truth value of our epistemological statements. At the same time, however, mathematical statements are not products of a chain of logical deductions and on these grounds I admit them as being a priori.

Of much greater interest to me are the a priori statements which compose an epistemology. We are always faced with the rather thorny problem of how to formulate such statements. We must go about the process with an eye towards ensuring that our epistemological statements correspond to observable reality. But to which elements of reality must our statements correspond? For that matter, which elements are actually real and not just imaginary products of our perception? There are no easy answers to such questions, but it is clear that we must have some method of limiting and shaping the a priori statements which serve as the cornerstones of our epistemology.

Limiting A Priori Statements

Descartes pioneered a method of limiting a priori statements which is known as Cartesian Doubt. Descartes, following the rule of Cartesian Doubt, rejected all statements which he did not know to be true beyond any and all doubt. He posited that the resulting few statements would then serve as the foundations for an all-encompasing epistemology. This approach led him to acknowledge that the only thing of which he could be absolutely sure was the existence of the doubt itself. From this he inferred that there must also exist an ego, a self, which could entertain such doubts. This, in turn, gave rise to what is probably the most well-known philosophical statement of all time: "I think, therefore I am."

The fundamental difficulty with this approach is that we can easily question (or doubt) the validity of Descartes' inference of a self. If Cartesian Doubt is our litmus test, then we must reject the inference of ego, simply because we can doubt the validity of the inference. So, Cartesian Doubt only allows us to accept the existence of doubt itself. Nothing more. Cartesian Doubt simply does not provide us with an adequate foundation on which to establish an epistemology.

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