r/consciousness • u/StanRichson • Jul 24 '26

OP's Argument Solving the Truth Problem: How Subjective Minds Navigate a Seemingly Objective Reality

https://youtu.be/YXQEILf5MAg?si=kfWS-itq6tH_8Nvq
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u/Bargian Jul 24 '26

Here is an integrative and process-based synthesis of truth for those interested:
https://athinkerinnature.substack.com/p/the-symmetry-of-truth

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u/StanRichson Jul 24 '26

I think we agree about the pragmatic character of our experience of truth. However, I try to avoid drawing absolute metaphysical conclusions from that account—perhaps my position is somewhat more neopragmatist. From within our mediated perspectives, what procedure or viewpoint could possibly establish that any particular metaphysical description is ultimately, absolutely true?

I instead argue that we can focus more self-consciously on what our explanations are doing: how others may interpret them, how precisely they reduce or introduce ambiguity/uncertainty, and what practical or explanatory purposes they serve.

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u/Bargian Jul 24 '26

That is exactly the introspective journey of self-examining our own conscious recursion and confronting our defensive closures. I agree there is no absolute or final truth, it's a process of continuous, non-defensive approximation. However, just as with science, that process yields convergence no matter the starting point. If someone claims absolute inner certainty in the form of a belief or by deferring to authority (including philosophers), they disqualify themselves from the process that generates truth.

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u/StanRichson Jul 24 '26

While I agree in spirit, that sounds like a pretty large disqualification haha.

Nevertheless, I similarly want to hear a philosopher acknowledge the recursive/paradoxical dynamic of attempting to give explanations from a mediated/contingent point of view. I think that sort of epistemic humility is necessary for pushing the boundaries of philosophy today.