advantages of rationalism include
those of Descartes and Plato. Ball of
wax to suppose fallibility of the
senses.
Disadvantages are all regarding the views of empiricism. All of Locke
and Hume's views and the idea that idiots are unable to get the same
knowledge as everyone therefore innate ideas cannot be universalised.
Descartes - Waves of Doubt,
senses are falllible
Disadvantages - risks solipsism, separates
mind from body and does not survive the
verification principle.
Advantages - explains how senses can be deceiving, we
cannot doubt our own existence, removes the role of
experience if we believe we cannot trust senses.
Plato
Advantages - explains how we group things together,
perfect circle, cave allegory
Disadvantages - appeals to transcendental
realm, slave boys and who decides on the forms.
Empiricism
Advantages include responses from science.
Observation is used in order to gain new
scientific knowledge. Also sensory experience
accounts for all of the senses, reason does not.
Disadvantages include
examples such as ball
of wax. Senses are
fallible
Locke - the mind is a tabula rasa. We furnish our
empty cabinet with repitition of experience in order to
gain our knowledge.
Advantages - Locke's ideas reflect real world
experience, supports Ockham's
razor(simplest explanation)
Disadvantages - Idea has been confused with experience,
argument is misdirected and there is no abstraction with
Locke's theory. A different dog is not a different idea.
Hume
Advantage - coherent explanation of how we get
ideas, complex/simple ideas and missing shade
of blue explanation
Disadvantage - counter point to missing shade
of blue, empathy, necessity, causation and self
Kant
Advantage - conceptual scheme explains role of
reason and experience, ties together empiricism and rationalism and ship analogy
Disadvantage - Conceptual relativism, synthetic a priori - maths?
and Hume:schemes are confusing