Why the epistemology of testimony is interesting - Historical and current philosophical perspectives, including the conflict between Hume and Reid

The paper analyzes and criticizes the tendency of past and present thinkers for paying insufficient attention to testimony as a source of justified be liefs and knowledge. It shows that testimony is an important source for the acquisition of many of our beliefs, and that an epistemology of testimony is something that is philosophically needed. Since there is a conflict betw een Hume and Reid on the subject, it is also worthy of attention within the history of philosophy. The epistemology of testimony should raise the issu e of the conditions necessary and sufficient for the acquisition of justifi ed belief or knowledge on testimony; it presupposes a general epistemology about the nature of justification and knowledge; it must describe the vario us types of testimony. In conclusion, the paper suggests that there are imp ortant connections between the epistemology of testimony and the philosophy of language, the philosophy of science and the philosophy of mind. We have reasons enough here to pursue the topic in some depth.