Skepticism ‘SKEPTIC’ IS DERIVED FROM THE GREEK NOUN SKEPSIS AND MEANS EXAMINATION.

Pyrrhonian Skepticism  Pyrrho of Elis is the founder  He did not actually write anything himself.  What we know about him comes from his pupil Timon.  Pyrrho mistrusted his senses.  Pyrrho was said to have reached a godlike state of calm due to his lack of opinion.

Aenesidemus  He led a revival of Pyrrhonian skepticism.  He was a member of Academy.  He was unhappy with the fact that the Academics affirmed some things and denied others.  He tried to revitalize skepticism by going back to the form inspired by Pyrrho.

Ten Modes  Aenesidemus came up with a set of ten skeptical arguments regarding the nature of things.

1 st Mode  “It is not reasonable to suppose that the way the world appears to us humans is more accurate than the incompatible ways it appears to other animals.”  We have no rational ground on which to prefer our appearances.  Example  Manure is repulsive to humans  Manure is delightful to dogs  In its nature, we can not say that it is either repulsive or delightful, or both repulsive and delightful.

2 nd Mode  “The world appears in incompatible ways to members of different species, so too does it appear incompatibly to members of the same species.”  We have no rational grounds to prefer our own view of things.  Example  Some humans enjoy the taste of broccoli.  Some humans are disgusted by the taste of broccoli.  We can not say that the nature of broccoli is either enjoyable or disgusting.

3 rd Mode  “Just as the world appears in incompatible ways to different people, it also appears incompatibly to the different senses of one and the same person.”  Example  Perfume is pleasant to the nose.  Perfume is disgusting to the tongue.  Perfume is no more pleasant then non-pleasant.

4 th Mode  “The differences in the emotional or physical state of the perceiver affects his perception of the world.”  “We have no rational ground on which to prefer our experiences in one set of circumstances to our experiences in another.”  Example  To a person that is depressed, the world is a bad place to live.  To a person that is happy, the world is wonderful and life is good.  They are looking at the same world but their perception is different due to their emotional state.

5 th Mode  “The differences in the location and position of an observed object relative to the observer will greatly affect the way the object appears.”  “We are left without any rational grounds on which to prefer some particular location or position over another.”  Example  Use the University of Toledo  From an airplane, the campus looks small and condensed.  If you are standing in Centennial Mall, the buildings look large and spread out.  We can not say that UT is either a small campus or a large campus.

6 th Mode  “Nothing can be experienced in its simple purity but is always experienced as mixed together with other things.”  Example  Watching the sun set.  There are always other factors like wind and temperature.  We are never able to say what the nature of something is.

7 th Mode  “Different affects are produced by altering the quantity and proportions of things.”  Example  A pile of sand is smooth.  A grain of sand is rough.  In its nature, sand is no more smooth then it is rough.

8 th Mode  “Something appears to have the property F only relative to certain features of the perceiving subject or relative to certain features of the object.”  In regards to the nature of an object, we can not prefer one set of circumstances to another.  We must suspend judgements.

9 th Mode  “The frequency of encountering a thing affects the way that thing appears to us.”  When we see something beautiful for the first time it will seem extremely beautiful. After we have seen the beautiful thing multiple times it will not be as beautiful.  Example  Going to the beach and seeing the ocean for the first time was breath taking.  After seeing the ocean many times it is still beautiful but not breath taking.

10 th Mode  This deals with differences in customs and laws.  The differences in the way we evaluate the world.  Example  Legalization of marijuana.  Marijuana is legal in Colorado so it is considered ‘good’.  In Ohio, marijuana is illegal and is a criminal offense, therefore it is considered ‘bad’.  In and of itself, marijuana is not good nor bad, but only relative to some way of evaluating the world.

Pyrrho declared that…  Things are equally indifferent, unmeasurable, and inarbitrable.  Every property of everything is questionable.  Neither our sensations nor our opinions tell us truths or falsehoods.  You should not have any opinion about the truth or falsity of any statement.  The outcome from those who actually adopt this attitude, will be first speechlessness, and then freedom from disturbance.  You have to recognize that nothing is good or bad. If we get to that point there is no reason to be extremely upset or overly happy. This means you have reached tranquility.

The end goal is tranquility.  Living in accordance to how things seem.  Accept our limitations.  Operate in accordance with customs and habits.  Do not be disturbed by what we can not know.