Agnosticism
By: by Robert Flint
Series: The Croall lectures -- 1887-1888
Publisher: W. Blackwood
Published: 1903
Place of publication: Edinburgh
Language: eng
Number of pages: 602
Subjects: Agnosticism
Notes: Access to portions of this material may be restricted.
Table of contents: title: Chapter I. : Nature of Agnosticism; title: I. Origin, original application, and defects of the term; title: Hutton and Huxley on origin of the term; title: Critical remarks on the term and its application; title: Favorable reception of the word; its causes; title: Tribute to Huxley; title: II. Agnosticism an epistemological theory equivalent to philosophical skepticism; title: Questions as to limits of knowledge; title: On the differentia of the term agnosticism; title: Likeness to the term socialism; title: Definition must be relative; title: The duty thus implied; title: Correct use of the term; title: III. Agnosticism and Gnosticism; title: How related; title: Merits and defects of both; title: Truthfulness; title: Faith and doubt; title: Function of doubt; title: Our knowledge imperfect; title: Lesson for us; title: Chapter II. : Erroneous views of agnosticism; title: I. Not equivalent to truth-search or honesty of investigation; title: Owen on dogmatism and skepticism; title: Huxley on agnosticism and creed; title: II. Not equivalent to know-nothingness; title: Agnosticism and doctrine of nescience; title: ^; title: Agnosticism only a special theory of nescience; title: III. Agnosticism not necessarily atheism. Dr Bithell's position; title: Agnosticism not atheism; title: Atheist's relation to agnosticism: opinion of Dr Bithell; title: IV. Not to be identified with positivism. Professor Fraser; title: Agnosticism not positivism; title: Professor Fraser's view. Note.; title: Positivism and theory of knowledge; title: V. Not to be identified with denial of the cognoscibility; accompanied with affirmation of the reality of the absolute; title: Professor Calderwood's view; title: VI. Roberty's views on agnosticism; title: General statement of his views; title: Originality and ingenuity of them; title: Defects; title: VII. Criticism of Leslie Stephen's views of agnosticism; title: His application of the name; title: Its unfairness; title: On misuse of certain terms; title: Chapter III. History of agnosticism; title: I. Introductory. Oriental agnosticism; title: Agnosticism should be studied historically; title: Origin and early stages of agnosticism; title: Oriental agnosticism: Hebrew, Chinese, Hindu; title: ^; title: II. Greco-Roman agnosticism. Pre-Socratic or preliminary period; title: Influence of Eleatic, Heraclitean, and materialistic philosophy on Greek skepticism; title: The sophists and agnosticism; title: III. Post-Socratic or developed period; title: Pyrrho, Arcesilaos, and Carneades as skeptics; title: Enesidemus and the ten tropes; title: Enesidemus and causality; title: Sextus Empiricus and the Pyrrhonic Institutes; title: Greek skepticism not specially antagonistic to religion or morality; title: IV. Middle ages; title: How far agnosticism was present in the medieval world; title: V. First period of modern agnosticism; title: Causes of agnosticism in the period; title: Characteristics of the agnosticism of the period; title: VI. Representative agnostics of the transition period; title: Agrippa of Nettesheim; title: Montaigne; title: Charron; title: Sanchez; title: La Mothe Le Vayer; title: Glanville, Hirnhaim, and Huet; title: Pascal; title: Bayle; title: Chapter IV. : Agnosticism of Hume and Kant; title: I. Hume: Prefatory as to his agnosticism; title: ^; title: Influence of Hume. How Huxley, Riehl, and Compayre have overlooked his skepticism; title: Sources of Hume's philosophy and skepticism; title: Relation of his agnosticism to his psychology. Hume and Locke.; title: II. Humes agnosticism in general; title: His sensism and views on substances; title: Hume on consciousness of self and causality; title: III. Hume's agnosticism in religion; title: His personal attitude towards religion; title: Thoroughness of his anti-theological skepticism; title: His Natural History of Religion; title: His Essays on Miracles; title: Final issue of his skepticism; title: IV. Kant's answer to Hume and his own agnosticism; title: relation of Kant to Hume; title: Kant's transcendental esthetic stated; title: Criticism of it: its defects; title: Kant's transcendental logic: (A) Analytic; title: General statement of; title: Hume and Kant compared. Superiority of latter; title: Criticism of Kant's criticism of knowledge; title: Kant's transcendental logic: (B) Dialectic; title: His doctrine of pure reason stated and criticized; title: ^; title: His 'rational psychology' partly true, partly erroneous; title: His 'rational cosmology' in the main a failure; title: His 'rational theology' ingenious and self-consistent but inconclusive; title: His criticism of the theistic arguments examined; title: its general defects; title: Worth of the cry, 'back to Kant'; title: Chapter V: Complete or absolute agnosticism; title: I. Agnosticism not exactly divisional; its general divisions; title: No strictly absolute or total agnosticism; title: No merely partial or modified agnosticism; title: Modification and limitation imply each other; title: II. Why complete agnosticism requires to be discussed; criticism of the views of Paulsen; title: Complete agnosticism should be first considered; title: Paulsen's reasons for disbelief in a skeptical theory of knowledge; title: They are contradicted by the history of philosophy; title: Hume misunderstood; title: Absolute agnosticism not extinct; title: Is a distinct form of solving the problem of knowledge; title: III. Species of complete agnosticism; inconsistency of systematic and universal doubt; title: IV. Inconsistency of systematic and universal disbelief; title: V. Absolute agnosticism and first principles; title: VI. Absolute Agnosticism and Practical life; title: Chapter VI.: Mitigated and partial agnosticism and their forms; title: Absolute agnosticism a false and unattainable ideal; title: ^; title: I. Mitigated agnosticism, its underlying assumptions; title: II. Hume on mitigated and absolute skepticism; title: III. Partial or limited skepticism: its forms and their inter-relations; title: Chapter VII: Partial or limited agnosticism as to ultimate objects of knowledge; title: I. On assigning limits to knowledge; title: II. Ultimate objects of knowledge; title: III. Agnosticism and the self; title: IV. Agnosticism as to the world; title: Chapter VIII: Agnosticism as to God; title: I. Introductory remarks on agnosticism as to God; title: II. Prevalence of anti-religious agnosticism; title: III. Some causes of prevalence of anti-religious agnosticism; title: IV. 'The will' and 'the wish' to believe; title: Chapter IX: Agnosticism as to religious belief; title: I. Theories as to belief; title: II. The sphere of belief; title: III. Christian faith in relation to belief; title: IV. Why belief as to religion is so often false; title: V. The skeptical inference from prevalence of false religious belief erroneous; title: ^; title: VI. True inferences from prevalence of false religious belief; title: VII. Bases of agnostic religious belief in Christianity; title: VIII. Religious belief and transmitted common doctrine and general consent; title: IX. Relation of character to history of belief; title: X. Belief in relation to authority. Forms of religious authority.; title: Chapter X: Agnosticism as to knowledge of God; title: I. Glance at the history of religious knowledge; title: II. In what senses knowledge of God is not attainable; title: III. Agnostic positions relative to knowledge of God; title: IV. The agnosticism of Hamilton, Mansel, and Spencer; title: The agnosticism of Hamilton; title: Agnosticism of Mansel; title: Agnosticism of Spencer; title: Present work part of a system of natural theology