The model Aristotle seems to have for knowledge is of deductive reasoning. If all knowledge were deductive, then there would need to be something to start things off, otherwise, there would only be tautologies that one would know.
My opinion is that his model is wrong, and that knowledge is not all deductive.
So, I agree that saying that something or other is "self-evident" is a cheat. In fact, it is a fallacy that is so common it has a name; it is begging the question. So I am saying it is more of a cheat than you are saying it is.
My opinion is that his model is wrong, and that knowledge is not all deductive.
So, I agree that saying that something or other is "self-evident" is a cheat. In fact, it is a fallacy that is so common it has a name; it is begging the question. So I am saying it is more of a cheat than you are saying it is.
"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.
