Explain the tripartite view of knowledge and Gettier’s response

The tripartite view is an analysis of knowledge, also known as justified true belief. It is commonly held that someone has knowledge of that P if 1 - P is true 2 - S believes that P3 - S is justified in believing that P.JTB is usually advocated for by philosophers as it goes further than just holding a true belief, as the process of acquiring a true belief can be random, thus not counting as knowledge, which is why some argue the belief must be justified.
However, Gettier questioned the sufficiency of the JTB conditions. He proposed his famous ‘Smith and Jones’ example in a paper to show that S can have a justified true belief of that P, but S does not know that P. In the case of smith and Jones, it is only a matter of chance that Smith’s belief is true even if it was justified.

Related Philosophy and Ethics GCSE answers

All answers ▸

What is a "prayer of intercession"? provide an example.


Examine how the falsification and verification principles challenge the meaningfulness of religious language


What are the main differences between Bentham and Mill's utilitarianism and which theory is better?


'Utilitarianism is the best approach to solving moral dilemmas'


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo
Cookie Preferences