Animal Instinct and Epistemology

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Animal Intelligence and Epistemology

Epistemology is defined as the area of philosophy that deals with questions concerning knowledge and that considers various theories of knowledge. There are many paths to follow in epistemology, including skepticism, rationalism, empiricism, constructivism, and epistemological relativism, all of which offer very different views to explain how people know things. These views concern primarily human intelligence and largely ignore animal intelligence in creating their theories, but animal intelligence could play a pivotal role in the development of epistemological theories. This issue has been controversial, especially in recent years when research has revealed that animal’s thoughts very likely extend beyond instinct and conditioning as B.F. Skinner and Rene Descartes once thought. Today, the question of whether animals besides humans possess intelligence is a prevalent one and may help humans to understand better the intricate concept of epistemology.

The concept of intelligence is itself controversial. There are varying definitions of intelligence, including the Russian Artificial Intelligence Researcher’s definition that an intelligent being gives intelligent answers to intelligent questions (Animal Intelligence). Webster’s dictionary defines intelligence as simply the capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding, and similar forms of mental activity (Webster). In an article for The Nature Institute, intelligence is given the definition of “ the capacity to meet new and unforeseen situations by rapid and effective adjustment of behavior” (Holdrege). So, with a vague definition of intelligence, it is difficult to determine whether or not animals exhibit intelligence. To meet t...

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...o not wantonly destroy their environment for any personal gain; they do what they have to in order to survive and nothing more. Some might say that exhibits more intelligence than humans are capable of.

Works Cited

“Animal Intelligence.” 24 June 2001. 18 Feb. 2007.

Holdrege, Craig. “Elephantine Intelligence.” The Nature Institute.

“Inside the Animal Mind.” NATURE. 18 Feb. 2007

Viegas, Jennifer. “Animal Intelligence Resists Definition”. Discovery News. 6 June 2006. 18 Feb. 2007.

Webster’s Dictionary.

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