Timothy Williamson
Encyclopedia
Timothy Williamson is a British
philosopher whose main research interests are in philosophical logic
, philosophy of language
, epistemology and metaphysics
.
He is currently the Wykeham Professor
of Logic at the University of Oxford
, and Fellow of New College, Oxford
. He was previously Professor of Logic and Metaphysics at the University of Edinburgh
(1995–2000); Fellow and Lecturer in Philosophy at University College, Oxford
(1988–1994); and Lecturer in Philosophy at Trinity College, Dublin
(1980–1988). He was president of the Aristotelian Society
from 2004 to 2005.
He is a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA), the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
, Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) and is member of the World Knowledge Dialogue Scientific Board.
and continued at Henley Grammar School. He then went to Oxford University. He graduated in 1976 with a B.A. (first class honours
) in Mathematics and Philosophy, and in 1981 with a doctorate in philosophy (D.Phil.
) for a thesis examining "The Concept of Approximation to the Truth".
philosophy of language
, logic
, metaphysics
and epistemology.
On vagueness
, he holds a position known as epistemicism
, which states that every seemingly vague predicate (like "bald", or "thin
") actually has a sharp cutoff, which is impossible for us to know. That is, there is some number of hairs such that anyone with that number is bald, and anyone with even one more hair is not. In actuality, this condition will be spelled out only partly in terms of numbers of hairs, but whatever measures are relevant will have some precise cutoff. This solution to the difficult sorites paradox
was considered an astonishing and unacceptable consequence, but has become a relatively mainstream view since his defense of it. Williamson is fond of using the statement, "no one knows whether I am thin" to illustrate his view.
In epistemology, he suggests that the concept of knowledge
is unanalyzable. This goes against the common trend in philosophical literature up to that point, which was to argue that knowledge could be analysed into constituent concepts. (Typically this would be justified true belief
plus an extra factor.) He agrees that knowledge entails justification, truth and belief
, but that it is conceptually primitive. He accounts for the importance of belief by discussing its connections with knowledge, but avoids the disjunctivist position of saying that belief can be analyzed as the disjunction of knowledge with some distinct, non-fact
ive mental state.
Williamson has also published more than 120 articles in peer-reviewed scholarly journals.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
philosopher whose main research interests are in philosophical logic
Philosophical logic
Philosophical logic is a term introduced by Bertrand Russell to represent his idea that the workings of natural language and thought can only be adequately represented by an artificial language; essentially it was his formalization program for the natural language...
, philosophy of language
Philosophy of language
Philosophy of language is the reasoned inquiry into the nature, origins, and usage of language. As a topic, the philosophy of language for analytic philosophers is concerned with four central problems: the nature of meaning, language use, language cognition, and the relationship between language...
, epistemology and metaphysics
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...
.
He is currently the Wykeham Professor
Wykeham Professor
The University of Oxford has three statutory professorships named after William of Wykeham.-Logic:The Wykeham Professorship in Logic was established in 1859, although it was not known as the Wykeham chair until later...
of Logic at the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, and Fellow of New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
. He was previously Professor of Logic and Metaphysics at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
(1995–2000); Fellow and Lecturer in Philosophy at University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
(1988–1994); and Lecturer in Philosophy at Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
(1980–1988). He was president of the Aristotelian Society
Aristotelian Society
The Aristotelian Society for the Systematic Study of Philosophy was founded at a meeting on 19 April 1880, at 17 Bloomsbury Square which resolved "to constitute a society of about twenty and to include ladies; the society to meet fortnightly, on Mondays at 8 o'clock, at the rooms of the Spelling...
from 2004 to 2005.
He is a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA), the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway.-History:The University of Oslo was established in 1811. The idea of a learned society in Christiania surfaced for the first time in 1841. The city of Throndhjem had no university, but had a learned...
, Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) and is member of the World Knowledge Dialogue Scientific Board.
Education
Timothy Williamson's education began at Leighton Park SchoolLeighton Park School
Leighton Park School is a co-educational Quaker independent school for both day and boarding pupils. It is situated in the large town of Reading in Berkshire, in South East England...
and continued at Henley Grammar School. He then went to Oxford University. He graduated in 1976 with a B.A. (first class honours
British undergraduate degree classification
The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading scheme for undergraduate degrees in the United Kingdom...
) in Mathematics and Philosophy, and in 1981 with a doctorate in philosophy (D.Phil.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
) for a thesis examining "The Concept of Approximation to the Truth".
Contribution to philosophy
Williamson has contributed to analyticAnalytic philosophy
Analytic philosophy is a generic term for a style of philosophy that came to dominate English-speaking countries in the 20th century...
philosophy of language
Philosophy of language
Philosophy of language is the reasoned inquiry into the nature, origins, and usage of language. As a topic, the philosophy of language for analytic philosophers is concerned with four central problems: the nature of meaning, language use, language cognition, and the relationship between language...
, logic
Logic
In philosophy, Logic is the formal systematic study of the principles of valid inference and correct reasoning. Logic is used in most intellectual activities, but is studied primarily in the disciplines of philosophy, mathematics, semantics, and computer science...
, metaphysics
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...
and epistemology.
On vagueness
Vagueness
The term vagueness denotes a property of concepts . A concept is vague:* if the concept's extension is unclear;* if there are objects which one cannot say with certainty whether belong to a group of objects which are identified with this concept or which exhibit characteristics that have this...
, he holds a position known as epistemicism
Epistemicism
Epistemicism is a position about vagueness in the philosophy of language or metaphysics, according to which there are facts about the boundaries of a vague predicate which we cannot possibly discover...
, which states that every seemingly vague predicate (like "bald", or "thin
Thin
Thin may refer to:*People with lean narrow physiques, see emaciation and underweight* Thin client, computer in client-server architecture networks* Thin film, material layer of about 1 µm thickness...
") actually has a sharp cutoff, which is impossible for us to know. That is, there is some number of hairs such that anyone with that number is bald, and anyone with even one more hair is not. In actuality, this condition will be spelled out only partly in terms of numbers of hairs, but whatever measures are relevant will have some precise cutoff. This solution to the difficult sorites paradox
Sorites paradox
The sorites paradox is a paradox that arises from vague predicates. The paradox of the heap is an example of this paradox which arises when one considers a heap of sand, from which grains are individually removed...
was considered an astonishing and unacceptable consequence, but has become a relatively mainstream view since his defense of it. Williamson is fond of using the statement, "no one knows whether I am thin" to illustrate his view.
In epistemology, he suggests that the concept of knowledge
Knowledge
Knowledge is a familiarity with someone or something unknown, which can include information, facts, descriptions, or skills acquired through experience or education. It can refer to the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject...
is unanalyzable. This goes against the common trend in philosophical literature up to that point, which was to argue that knowledge could be analysed into constituent concepts. (Typically this would be justified true belief
Justified true belief
Justified true belief is one definition of knowledge that states in order to know that a given proposition is true, one must not only believe the relevant true proposition, but one must also have justification for doing so. In more formal terms, a subject S knows that a proposition P is true if,...
plus an extra factor.) He agrees that knowledge entails justification, truth and belief
Belief
Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true.-Belief, knowledge and epistemology:The terms belief and knowledge are used differently in philosophy....
, but that it is conceptually primitive. He accounts for the importance of belief by discussing its connections with knowledge, but avoids the disjunctivist position of saying that belief can be analyzed as the disjunction of knowledge with some distinct, non-fact
Fact
A fact is something that has really occurred or is actually the case. The usual test for a statement of fact is verifiability, that is whether it can be shown to correspond to experience. Standard reference works are often used to check facts...
ive mental state.
Publications
- Identity and Discrimination, Oxford: Blackwell, 1990.
- Vagueness, London: Routledge, 1994.
- Knowledge and Its LimitsKnowledge and Its LimitsPhilosopher Timothy Williamson writes in his book, Knowledge and its Limits, that the concept of knowledge cannot be analyzed into a set of other concepts; instead, it is sui generis...
, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. - The Philosophy of Philosophy, Oxford: Blackwell, 2007.
Williamson has also published more than 120 articles in peer-reviewed scholarly journals.
External links
- Timothy Williamson's homepage at University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
's Department of Philosophy. - Moscow Center for Consciousness Studies video interview with Timothy Williamson October 4, 2010.
- Roundtable on aims and methods of philosophy with Timothy Williamson as the main presenter October 6, 2010