Philosophy Bites Edouard Machery on Variations in Responses to Thought Experiments
13 snips
Nov 2, 2025 Edouard Machery, a philosopher specializing in cross-cultural intuitions and thought experiments, delves into the surprising variability of responses to philosophical dilemmas. He challenges the idea that intuitions are universal, sharing insights from studies conducted across diverse cultures. Notably, he examines the Gettier problem and reveals unexpected global agreement, while also highlighting significant differences in interpretations of Kripke's and Putnam's thought experiments. Machery argues for the need to scrutinize the reliability of thought experiments in philosophical discourse.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
What A Thought Experiment Is
- A thought experiment asks you to imagine a non-actual situation and reason about what would happen there.
- Philosophy and science have long relied on thought experiments as tools for conceptual inquiry.
Philosophers Assume Universal Intuitions
- Philosophers often assume their intuitions are widely shared across people and cultures.
- That assumption underpins much use of thought experiments in analytic philosophy.
Gettier Clock Example
- Machery recounts the classic Gettier clock example where John believes it's 3pm from a broken clock.
- Philosophers judge John doesn't know despite true, justified belief, showing Gettier's counterexample.