Outlines of Pyrrhonism by Sextus Empiricus
Throughout history philosophers have sought to define, understand, and delineate concepts important to human well-being. One such concept is knowledge. Many philosophers believed that absolute, certain knowledge, is possible-that the physical world and ideas formulated about it could be given solid foundation unaffected by the varieties of mere opinion.Sextus Empiricus stands as an example of the skeptic school of thought whose members believed that knowledge was either unattainable or, if a genuine possibility, the conditions necessary to achieve it were next to impossible to satisfy. In other words, in the absence of complete knowledge, one must make do with the information provided by an imperfect world and conveyed to the mind through sense impressions that can often deceive us. Throughout his life Sextus Empiricus entered into intellectual combat with those who confidently claimed to possess indubitable knowledge. For skeptics, the best one can hope to achieve is a reasonable suspension of judgment-remaining ever mindful that claims to knowledge require careful scrutiny, thoughtful analysis, and critical review if we are to prevent ourselves and others from plunging headlong into mistaken notions.In the late third century CE, SEXTUS EMPIRICUS, a physician and philosopher, wrote. Sextus' life is largely unknown. He appears to have lived in Rome for a time before moving to Alexandria. Sextus' philosophical works are Outlines of Pyrrhonism, Against the Dogmatists, Against the Logi-cians, Against the Physicists, Against the Ethicists, and Against the Professors, however his medical publications are lost. A treatise on the soul and Notes on Medicine are also attributed to him.
Sextus represented Aenesidemus of Cnossos' new skeptical school, which system Sextus attempted to define. In a nutshell, skeptics devote their lives to critiquing and exposing the flaws in every good philosophical belief. Sextus was an outspoken supporter of the Pyrrhonistic suspension of judgment (called for the Elis philosopher Pyrrho [ca. 360-270 BCE), which claimed that no unquestionably authentic knowledge of reality can be obtained.
As a result, we should refrain from making judgments on things we don't fully comprehend. Sextus' writings may appear to be lacking in originality, but they are a valuable compilation of his predecessors' work, and as such, they give us with a much-needed explanation of ancient skepticism.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780879755973 |
| ISBN 10 | 0879755970 |
| Title | Outlines of Pyrrhonism |
| Author | Sextus Empiricus |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Prometheus Books |
| Year published | 1990-05-01 |
| Number of pages | 288 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |