In
epistemology
Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that examines the nature, origin, and limits of knowledge. Also called "the theory of knowledge", it explores different types of knowledge, such as propositional knowledge about facts, practical knowle ...
, epistemological solipsism is the claim that one can only be sure of the existence of one's mind. The existence of other minds and the external world is not necessarily rejected but one can not be sure of its existence.
[Sami Pihlström, ''Why Solipsism Matters'', Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020, ch. 2: "Metaphysical and Skeptical Solipsism", subch.: "Classical Metaphysical and Epistemological Solipsism—the Cartesian Legacy."]
Overview
Epistemological solipsists claim that
realism begs the question
Begging (also known in North America as panhandling) is the practice of imploring others to grant a favor, often a gift of money, with little or no expectation of reciprocation. A person doing such is called a beggar or panhandler. Beggars m ...
: assuming there is a universe that is independent of the agent's mind, the agent can only ever know of this universe through the agent's
senses
A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the surroundings through the detection of stimuli. Although, in some cultures, five human senses were traditionally identified as su ...
. How is the existence of the independent universe to be scientifically studied? If people set up a camera to photograph the moon when they are not looking at it, then at best they determine that there is an image of the moon in the camera when they eventually look at it. Logically, this does not assure that the moon itself (or even the camera) existed at the time the photograph is supposed to have been taken. To establish that it is an image of an independent moon requires many other assumptions that amount to begging the question.
This relates to
Kantian
Kantianism () is the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher born in Königsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia). The term ''Kantianism'' or ''Kantian'' is sometimes also used to describe contemporary positions in philosophy of mi ...
transcendental aspects of the world, in which a new factor can be included, if the current axioms neither validate nor invalidate it. The
continuum hypothesis
In mathematics, specifically set theory, the continuum hypothesis (abbreviated CH) is a hypothesis about the possible sizes of infinite sets. It states:
Or equivalently:
In Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory with the axiom of choice (ZFC), this ...
and the
axiom of choice
In mathematics, the axiom of choice, abbreviated AC or AoC, is an axiom of set theory. Informally put, the axiom of choice says that given any collection of non-empty sets, it is possible to construct a new set by choosing one element from e ...
are examples of possible transcendental decision points.
Solipsism
Solipsism ( ; ) is the philosophical idea that only one's mind is sure to exist. As an epistemological position, solipsism holds that knowledge of anything outside one's own mind is unsure; the external world and other minds cannot be known ...
in its weak form is characterized by the repeated decision to not accept transcendental factors, a logical minimalism. In its strong form, the denial of the existence of an argument for the existence of an independent universe may be justified in principle in an empirical manner. Whether the nonexistence of a proof means the nonexistence of the entity is a transcendental choice.
See also
*
Metaphysical solipsism
*
Methodological solipsism
References
{{reflist
Epistemological theories
Solipsism