The term empiricism is derived from
the Greek word ‘empeiria’, which means experience. The philosophy of empiricism began
with the scientific methods of Sir Francis Bacon. Empiricism, in philosophy, possesses three broad views:
- All concepts originate in experience,
- All concepts are about or applicable to things that can be experienced,
- All rationally acceptable beliefs or propositions are justifiable or knowable only through experience.
There are different stages of the
development of the empiricist philosophy.
Classical Empiricism
Classical empiricism was dominated by the ideas of John
Locke, George Berkeley, and David Hume. Classical empiricism is characterised by
a rejection of innate, inborn knowledge or concepts. John Locke, well known as
an empiricist, wrote of the mind being a tabula rasa, a “blank slate” when we enter the world. At birth we know nothing; it is only subsequently that
the mind is furnished with information by experience.
Radical Empiricism
In its most radical forms, empiricism holds that all of
our knowledge is derived from the senses. Radical empiricism means our
knowledge of the world is based solely on our senses. This rejects all other
knowledge claims and places experiences as the only basis of human
knowledge.
Moderate Empiricism
Moderate empiricism means our experience is based on our
senses, but there are cases when our knowledge is not based on our senses. More
moderate empiricists, however, allow that there may be some cases in which the
senses do not ground our knowledge but hold that these are exceptions to a
general rule.
Facts as Experience in History
In historical explanations, a historian
uses facts to reconstruct historical events. Here facts represent the
experiences of the past and thereby its interpretation allows the historian to reconstruct
the past with factual experience. This method helps the historian indirectly experience the past and generate historical knowledge. The past is
different from the present in every aspect. The historian should try to understand
the reality of the past through the analysis of the facts. These facts allow the historian to experience the event in which he or she is studying.
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