Friday, April 23, 2021

Emotional Epistemology

Ethics affects what kinds of emotions we consider valid to feel, how much we listen to them, and on the other hand, the kinds of emotions that we trust affect the ethics that we have. So an input (and output) of ethical epistemologies are emotions. Thus we can say that there's such a thing as emotional epistemology. Believing, practically and epistemically, what follows from emotions.

For instance, we can believe in a hungry and angry way, or in a full and calm way. What is reality? Emotionally, what is hungry and angry can seem to have less "B.S." about it. Can we know things with our emotions? Maybe we can. So a case can be made for the hungry and angry epistemology. On the other hand, maybe we see the truth most clearly when we are not hungry and angry. We can take into account points of view outside whatever hunger and anger we have adopted (or, which has adopted us).

(There are probably other emotional epistemologies besides hungry, angry, full, and calm.)

No comments:

Post a Comment