When in Rome : an introduction to relativism and knowledge /
N.L. Gifford.
- Albany : State University of New York Press, (c)1983.
- xviii, 159 pages ; 24 cm.
- SUNY series in philosophy .
Includes bibliographies and index.
Chapter 1: The problem of knowledge -- Knowledge, who needs it? -- "I'm from Missouri--show me" -- Have a seat -- Belief, everybody's got one -- The foundations of knowledge -- Chapter 2: Naive Relativism -- Beauty is in the eye of the beholder: subjective knowledge -- Subjective evidence: a philosophical dilemma -- Different strokes for different folks: abuses -- The problem of evidence -- Chapter 3: Context relativism -- The importance of context: three examples -- Argument from uniqueness: the relativist's challenge -- Philosophers at work -- Subject and object -- It all depends on what you mean: abuses -- Increasing our knowledge of the world -- Chapter 4: Cultural relativism -- The argument from language -- Social scientists at work: Benedict and Marx -- The philosopher's dilemma returns: the problem of intersubjectivity -- Tools of evidence: confirmation and explanation -- Pseudo-generalization/pseudo-knowledge: abuses -- Science and knowledge -- Chapter 5: Empirical knowledge -- A modification -- Dialogue with the popular relativist -- A final defense of objectivity and universality.