We explain what rational knowledge is, the types of knowledge it encompasses. Also, its characteristics and examples.
What is rational knowledge?
In philosophy, rational knowledge is all knowledge obtained through the exercise of reason. Most of the time it is thought that this type of knowledge is the product of rationalists, such as Descartes or Leibniz, who placed special emphasis on rational epistemological (knowledge) processes.
Despite their differences, It is often said that all knowledge is rational. This is because, in one of its many meanings, knowledge is the result of a reflective process and interpretation of the world. The use of reason denotes a series of steps to find your object of knowledge. Rationalists maintain that direct contact with things does not give them knowledge but rather the disposition to know them. The rest is the work of reason.
In general, rational knowledge opposes two currents:
- Sensualism. It occurs in the case of F. Bacon in opposition to Descartes.
- Empiricism. It can be seen by opposing Locke or Berkeley to the rationalism of Leibniz.
See also: Theory of knowledge
Characteristics of rational knowledge
Rational knowledge emerges from reason. To acquire it, a conscious, methodical, often argumentative effort must be made. which obeys the formal laws of logic.
This means that rational knowledge is an analytical form of thinking, linked to a method. That is why it can be transmitted, demonstrated and replicated (in the case of experimental science). rational knowledge It does not try to verify but to demonstrate, with empirical evidence, inconsistencies and fallacies. in the different theories he faces.
K. Popper's critical rationalism is an example of rational knowledge. Unlike Plato, Descartes or Leibniz, Popper does not advocate reason as a way to discover the truth, but rather its use aims to discover methods, forms and gaps in existing theories. Only through a methodical use of reason can science advance.
Examples of rational knowledge
Rational knowledge occurs in different areas and forms. For example:
- Scientific knowledge. The conditions in which a natural phenomenon occurs are replicated—in a controlled environment—in order to isolate it and understand how it operates. From this observation, conclusions are drawn regarding its underlying logic. This type of knowledge uses the scientific method.
- The technical knowledge. Tools are used to solve problems. To find the correct way of use, you go through conscious understanding, which involves a rational process.
- philosophical knowledge. The aim is to understand reality and human existence through the systematic use of reason, that is, it does not appeal to sensitivity, but rather to formal demonstrations of deductive validity.
Rational knowledge and empirical knowledge
Empirical knowledge is derived from experience, that is, from perceptions. Those who are considered empiricists maintain that knowledge, in general, derives from the sensitive experience of the world, since it offers us immediate contact with things.
Rationalists, for their part, maintain that only through reason can we know. In philosophy, one of the most famous arguments is the one used by Descartes in the first part of his Metaphysical meditations. There he maintains that, given that the senses can be deceived and that wakefulness and sleep often cannot be distinguished, we cannot trust them to know and constitute reliable knowledge.
Other types of knowledge
Other forms of knowledge are:
- Scientific knowledge. It is derived from the application of the scientific method to the different hypotheses that arise from the observation of reality, in order to demonstrate through experiments what are the laws that govern the universe.
- Empirical knowledge. It is acquired through direct experience, repetition or participation, without requiring an approach to the abstract.
- Philosophical knowledge. It emerges from human thought, in the abstract, and uses various logical or formal reasoning methods, which do not always arise directly from reality, but from the imaginary representation of what is real.
- intuitive knowledge. It is acquired without formal reasoning, quickly and unconsciously.
- religious knowledge. It is linked to the mystical and religious experience, that is, to the knowledge that studies the link between the human being and the divine.
Continue with: Methodology
References
- “Rationality” on Wikipedia.
- “Rational knowledge and sensitive knowledge” (video) at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
- “Understanding and reason” in Filosofía.org.
- “Empirical and Rational Knowledge: What does it all mean?” by Ryan Evans on Medium.com.
- “Rational knowledge” in APA Dictionary of Psychology.
