The maturation of the Gettier problem

Abstract

Edmund Gettier�s paper �Is Justified True Belief Knowledge?� first appeared in an issue of Analysis (Vol. 23, No. 6), dated June of 1963, and although it�s tempting (and common) to wax hyperbolic when discussing the paper�s importance and influence, it is fair to say that its impact on contemporary philosophy has been substantial and wide-ranging. Epistemology has benefited from 50 years of sincere and rigorous discussion of issues arising from the paper, and Gettier�s conclusion that knowledge is not justified true belief is sometimes offered as an example of the reality of philosophical progress. (The idea that one short paper could be so important continues to fascinate philosophy students.) However, what can be called the Gettier problem has little to do with the text of the famous paper itself. The importance of the Gettier problem does not depend on the attribution of the tripartite theory of knowledge to Plato, Chisholm, and Ayer, nor on the psychological plausibility of the par ...