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36In defense of pure reasonPhilosophical Review 109 (1): 103-107. 2000.This book is an important contribution to the contemporary epistemological literature. It is the only available book-length treatment of epistemological issues associated with the a priori. Moreover, it provides the most comprehensive articulation and defense of traditional rationalism. The book is tightly organized, crisply argued, and sets the standard against which competing accounts must be measured.
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Modality and a priori knowledgeIn Otávio Bueno & Scott A. Shalkowski (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Modality, Routledge. 2018.
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39Is Knowledge of Essence the Basis of Modal Knowledge?Res Philosophica 97 (4): 593-609. 2020.E. J. Lowe offers an account of modal knowledge that involves two primary theses. First, the basis of modal knowledge is essential knowledge, and the source of essential knowledge is grasp of essence. Second, all empirical knowledge ultimately depends on some modal knowledge. This article assesses Lowe’s account and defends four conclusions. First, there is a tension in Lowe’s account of grasp of essence; it wavers between an undemanding version, which holds that grasp of essence requires no mor…Read more
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48Modal Empiricism: What is the ProblemOxford Studies in Epistemology 6. 2019.Kant contends that necessity is a criterion of the a priori—that is, that all knowledge of necessary propositions is a priori. This contention, together with two others that Kant took to be evident—we know some mathematical propositions and such propositions are necessary—leads directly to the conclusion that some knowledge is a priori. Although many contemporary philosophers endorse Kant’s criterion, supporting arguments are hard to come by. Gordon Barnes provides one of the few examples. My pu…Read more
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419Essence and ExplanationMetaphysics 2 (1): 88-96. 2020.In Necessary Beings, Bob Hale addresses two questions: What is the source of necessity? What is the source of our knowledge of it? He offers novel responses to them in terms of the metaphysical notion of nature or, more familiarly, essence. In this paper, I address Hale’s response to the first question. My assessment is negative. I argue that his essentialist explanation of the source of necessity suffers from three significant shortcomings. First, Hale’s leading example of an essentialist expla…Read more
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387Conceivability and Modal KnowledgeIn Essays on a Priori Knowledge and Justification, Oup Usa. pp. 271-288. 2014.Christopher Hill contends that the metaphysical modalities can be reductively explained in terms of the subjunctive conditional and that this reductive explanation yields two tests for determining the metaphysical modality of a proposition. He goes on to argue that his reductive account of the metaphysical modalities in conjunction with his account of modal knowledge underwrites the further conclusion that conceivability does not provide a reliable test for metaphysical possibility. I argue (1) …Read more
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224Knowledge and ModalityIn D. M. Borchert (ed.), Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2nd ed. pp. 100-102. 2006.
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17Essays on a Priori Knowledge and Justification (edited book)Oup Usa. 2014.The past twenty-five years have seen a major renewal of interest in the topic of a priori knowledge. In the sixteen essays collected here, which span this entire period, philosopher Albert Casullo documents the complex set of issues motivating the renewed interest, identifies the central epistemological questions, and provides the leading ideas of a unified response to them.
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1The Appeal to Inconceivability in Claims to a Priori KnowledgeDissertation, The University of Iowa. 1975.
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3Knowledge and the Elimination of TruthPhilosophie Et Culture: Actes du XVIIe Congrès Mondial de Philosophie 2 849-853. 1988.
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50Uncovering buried treasure: Henderson and Horgan on conceptual analysisPhilosophical Studies 169 (3): 509-523. 2014.David Henderson and Terry Horgan offer a detailed account of the structure of conceptual analysis that is embedded within a more general account of a priori justification. Their account highlights an important feature of conceptual analysis that has been overlooked in the recent debate. Although it is generally recognized that conceptual analysis involves an inference from premises to the effect that some concept does (or does not) apply to a range of particular cases to a general conclusion abo…Read more
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107Essays on a Priori Knowledge and Justification: EssaysOup Usa. 2012.The past twenty-five years have seen a major renewal of interest in the topic of a priori knowledge. In the sixteen essays collected here, which span this entire period, philosopher Albert Casullo documents the complex set of issues motivating the renewed interest, identifies the central epistemological questions, and provides the leading ideas of a unified response to them.
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66Response to my critics: Chris Pincock, Lisa Warenski and Jonathan WeinbergPhilosophical Studies 173 (6): 1705-1720. 2016.This is my response to the papers by Chris Pincock, Lisa Warenski and Jonathan Weinberg, which were presented at the Book Symposium on my Essays on A Priori Knowledge and Justification, American Philosophical Association Pacific Division Meetings, March 16–19, 2014
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85Causality, reliabilism, and mathematical knowledgePhilosophy and Phenomenological Research 52 (3): 557-584. 1992.
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84Particulars, substrata, and the identity of indiscerniblesPhilosophy of Science 49 (4): 591-603. 1982.This paper examines the view that ordinary particulars are complexes of universals. Russell's attempt to develop such a theory is articulated and defended against some common misinterpretations and unfounded criticisms in Section I. The next two sections address an argument which is standardly cited as the primary problem confronting the theory: (1) it is committed to the necessary truth of the principle of the identity of indiscernibles; (2) the principle is not necessarily true. It is argued i…Read more
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65Necessity, Certainty, and the A PrioriCanadian Journal of Philosophy 18 (1): 43-66. 1988.Empiricist theories of knowledge are attractive for they offer the prospect of a unitary theory of knowledge based on relatively well understood physiological and cognitive processes. Mathematical knowledge, however, has been a traditional stumbling block for such theories. There are three primary features of mathematical knowledge which have led epistemologists to the conclusion that it cannot be accommodated within an empiricist framework: 1) mathematical propositions appear to be immune from …Read more
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97Is Empiricism Coherent?The Proceedings of the Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy 5 61-74. 2000.In recent years empiricism has come under attack. Some argue that the view is incoherent and conclude, on that basis, that some knowledge is a priori. Whatever the merits of such arguments against empiricism, they cannot be parlayed into an argument in support of the a priori unless the latter is not open to those arguments. My primary contention is that the a priori is open to the arguments offered against empiricism. Hence, they do not advance the case for the a priori. I go on to offer an alt…Read more
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603The Coherence of EmpiricismPacific Philosophical Quarterly 81 (1): 31-48. 2000.Rationalists often argue that empiricism is incoherent and conclude, on that basis, that some knowledge is a priori. I contend that such arguments against empiricism cannot be parlayed into an argument in support of the a priori since rationalism is open to the same arguments. I go on to offer an alternative strategy. The leading idea is that, instead of offering a priori arguments against empiricism, rationalists should marshal empirical support for their position.
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86Experience and a priori justification (review)Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 63 (3). 2001.Laurence BonJour’s In Defense of Pure Reason is rich and challenging. It offers a tightly integrated attack on empiricism and defense of rationalism. The tight texture of argument makes it difficult to isolate and assess specific aspects of the book in a brief discussion. My goal is to examine the role of experience in BonJour’s conception of a priori justification.
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95Counterfactuals and Modal KnowledgeIn Essays on a Priori Knowledge and Justification, Oup Usa. pp. 251-270. 2014.Timothy Williamson offers a reductive account of modal knowledge in terms of knowledge of counterfactual conditionals. The account is developed in a broader context of defending two more general theses regarding the subject matter and methodology of philosophy. My primary focus in this paper is Williamson’s account of modal knowledge. I argue (1) that his account of modal knowledge does not support his more general theses regarding the subject matter and methodology of philosophy; (2) that the t…Read more
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38Analyticity and the A PrioriCanadian Journal of Philosophy, Supplementary Volume 18 (sup1): 113-150. 1992.The analytic/synthetic distinction has played a central role in discussions of a priori knowledge throughout the twentieth century. One of the primary reasons for the prominence of this distinction is the widespread influence of the tradition of logical empiricism which endorsed the following principles: All analytic propositions are knowable a prioriand All propositions knowable a priori are analytic.Hence, proponents of the a priori often argue in support of the contention that the proposition…Read more
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140Pollock and Sturgeon on defeatersSynthese 195 (7): 2897-2906. 2018.Scott Sturgeon has recently challenged Pollock’s account of undercutting defeaters. The challenge involves three primary contentions: the account is both too strong and too weak, undercutting defeaters exercise their power to defeat only in conjunction with higher-order beliefs about the basis of the lower-order beliefs whose justification they target, and since rebutting defeaters exercise their power to defeat in isolation, rebutting and undercutting defeaters work in fundamentally different w…Read more
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155Kripke on the a priori and the necessaryIn Paul K. Moser (ed.), Analysis, Oxford University Press. 1987.
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281Four challenges to the a priori—a posteriori distinctionSynthese 192 (9): 2701-2724. 2015.During the past decade a new twist in the debate regarding the a priori has unfolded. A number of prominent epistemologists have challenged the coherence or importance of the a priori—a posteriori distinction or, alternatively, of the concept of a priori knowledge. My focus in this paper is on these new challenges to the a priori. My goals are to provide a framework for organizing the challenges, articulate and assess a range of the challenges, and present two challenges of my own
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170Testimony and A Priori KnowledgeEpisteme: A Journal of Social Epistemology 4 (3): 322-334. 2007.Tyler Burge offers a theory of testimony that allows for the possibility of both testimonial a priori warrant and testimonial a priori knowledge. I uncover a tension in his account of the relationship between the two, and locate its source in the analogy that Burge draws between testimonial warrant and preservative memory. I contend that this analogy should be rejected, and offer a revision of Burge's theory that eliminates the tension. I conclude by assessing the impact of the revised theory on…Read more
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11Causality, Reliabilism, and Mathematical KnowledgePhilosophy and Phenomenological Research 52 (3): 557-584. 1992.
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264Perceptual space is monadicPhilosophy and Phenomenological Research 50 (September): 131-134. 1989.
Lincoln, Nebraska, United States of America
Areas of Specialization
Epistemology |
Metaphysics |
Areas of Interest
Epistemology |
Metaphysics |