Abstract
In this article, I use Edmund Gettier’s Ten Coins hypothetical scenario to illustrate some reasoning errors in the use of definite descriptions. The Gettier problem, central as it is to modern epistemology, is first and foremost an argument, which Gettier (Analysis 23(6):121–123, 1963) constructs to prove a contrary conclusion to a widely held view in epistemology. Whereas the epistemological claims in the case have been extensively analysed conceptually, the strategies and tools from other philosophical disciplines such as analytic philosophy of language, logic and argumentation that Gettier deploys in the case have scarcely received any attention. This work abstracts from the epistemological content and examines Gettier’s handling of the definite description involved, and how that affects the cogency of his argument.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
Yakubu (2016) critiques the manner of Gettier’s application of the rules of classical logic in that second argument.
References
Bernecker, Sven. 2011. Keeping Track of the Gettier Problem. Pacific Philosophical Quarterly 92: 127–152.
Bolzano, Bernard. 1837. The Theory of Science. Translated by Rolf George and Paul Rusnock. New York: Oxford University Press.
Damer, Edward. 2005. Attacking Faulty Reasoning: A Practical Guide to Fallacy-Free Arguments. Belmont, CA: Thomson and Wadsworth.
Donnellan, Keith. 1966. Reference and Definite Descriptions. The Philosophical Review 75(3): 281–304.
Engel, Mylan. 1992. Is Epistemic Luck Compatible with Knowledge? Southern Journal of Philosophy 30: 59–75.
Gettier, Edmund. 1963. Is Justified True Belief Knowledge? Analysis 23(6): 121–123.
Grice, Paul. 1975. Logic and Conversation. In Syntax and Semantics, Vol. 3, Speech Acts, ed. Peter Cole and Jerry L. Morgan, 41–58. New York: Academic Press.
Heathcote, A. 2006. Truthmaking and the Gettier Problem. In Aspects of Knowing, ed. S. Hetherington, 151–168. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Hetherington, Stephen. 2010. The Gettier Non-Problem. Logos and Episteme I 1: 85–107.
Hetherington, Stephen. 2011. Abnormality and Gettier Situations: An Explanatory Proposal. Ratio 24(2): 176–191.
King, Jeffrey. C. 2017. Structured Propositions. In The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 Edition), ed. Edward N. Zalta. https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/propositions-structured/.
Kirkham, Richard. 1984. Does the Gettier Problem Rest on a Mistake? Mind 93(372): 501–513.
Kripke, Saul. 1972. Naming and Necessity, 193–220. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Kripke, Saul. 1977. Speaker’s Reference and Semantic Reference. Midwest Studies in Philosophy II: 255–276.
Kripke, Saul. 2013. Reference and Existence: The John Locke Lectures. New York: Oxford University Press.
Ludlow, Peter, and Stephen, Neale. 1991. Indefinite Descriptions: In Defense of Russell. Linguistics and Philosophy 14: 171–204.
MacDonald, C., and L. Vaughn. 2016. The Power of Critical Thinking. 4th Canadian Edition. North York: Oxford University Press.
Nagel, Jennifer, San Juan, Valerie, and Mar, Raymond A. 2013. Lay Denial of Knowledge for Justified True Beliefs. Cognition 129: 652–661.
Pritchard, Duncan. 2005. Epistemic Luck. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Pritchard, Duncan. 2009. Knowledge. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Russell, Bertrand. 1905. On Denoting. Mind, New Series 14(56): 479–493.
Schmidt-Petri, Christoph. 2003. Is Gettier’s First Example Flawed? In Knowledge and Belief, ed. W. Löffler and P. Weingartner, 317–319. Kirchberg: ALWS.
Schreiber, D.S.G. 1987. The Illegitimacy of the Gettier Examples. Metaphilosophy 18(1): 49–54.
Strawson, Peter. 1950. On Referring. Mind, New Series 59(235): 320–344.
Turri, John. 2011. Manifest Failure: The Gettier Problem Solved. Philosopher’s Imprint 11(8): 1–11.
Yakubu, Yussif. 2016. Truth Analysis of the Gettier Argument. Metaphilosophy 47(3): 449–466.
Zagzebski, Linda. 1994. The Inescapability of Gettier Problems. The Philosophical Quarterly 44(174): 65–73.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Yakubu, Y. Definite Descriptions in Argument: Gettier’s Ten-Coins Example. Argumentation 34, 261–274 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10503-019-09507-w
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10503-019-09507-w