Truth: Origins, Criteria, and Philosophical Perspectives
The Concept of Truth
Origin of the Word “Truth”
The word “verdad” (truth) has rich origins across different languages:
- In Greek, aletheia means what is not hidden, what is apparent. Its opposite, pseudo, signifies disguise. Thus, truth, in the Greek sense, is the discovery of things, the disclosure of what is.
- In Latin, veritas refers to accuracy and precision. This word emphasizes truthfulness, which is opposed to lying or deception.
- In Hebrew, Emunah expresses truth. A true friend is one with whom you can confide. Emunah also refers to the hope that something we anticipate will be fulfilled.
These three distinct senses are the origin of the term truth.
States of Security Regarding Truth
Our minds can experience different states regarding the certainty of truth:
- Ignorance: A state of mind that admits a lack of knowledge about a particular matter.
- Doubt: A state in which one cannot affirm or deny the truth.
- Certainty: A subjective state in which the mind affirms the truth of a judgment without admitting possible errors.
Criteria for Determining Truth
Various criteria are used to establish what is true:
- Authority: Truth derived from someone credited for their knowledge in a subject.
- Tradition: What has been accepted as true over time.
- Correspondence between Thought and Reality: What we think is true if it aligns with reality, establishing an adequacy or correspondence between what is said and what is.
- Logical Consistency: A logical-mathematical approach that involves checking for contradictions.
- Utility: Something is true when it is beneficial and useful for us.
- Evidence: A key criterion, presented as indisputable.
Theories of Truth
Truth as Correspondence: Aristotle
According to Aristotle, to say of what is that it is not, or of what is not that it is, is untrue. To say of what is that it is, and of what is not that it is not, is true.
This theory involves three elements: the object (what it is), the subject (the saying), and the subject’s representation of the object. Truth is understood as a relation of fit or correspondence between these two elements: the correlation between what people say about something and what that something is.
Truth as Coherence: Hegel
For Hegel, truth is a contextual approach where nothing is true or false in isolation. Instead, each piece of knowledge refers to the rest of the system of knowledge. As Hegel stated, “the true is the whole.”
Pragmatist Theory: William James
In William James’s pragmatist theory, everything that is useful or practical is considered truth. He understands adequacy in a similar sense: for example, “this bike is suitable for moto-cross” in the sense that it serves a particular purpose.
Consensual Theory: Peirce, Apel, and Habermas
Peirce, Apel, and Habermas emphasize the need for dialogue to discover truth. When we assert something is true, we imply that we have sufficient reasons to convince others.
Universal Moral Values and Relativism
Some perspectives deny the possibility of finding universally shared moral values.
Moral relativism claims that principles of right and goodness can only be found within each specific group and are relative to it. Moral relativism has the following positions:
- Cultural Relativism: Moral principles are dependent on various cultures.
- Contextualism: We can only determine if a proposal is right or wrong by considering it within its specific context of action.
- Ethnocentrism: Justifying the goodness of actions for those who already share our way of life.