Naive Realism & justification of atheism
One of the most common demands of atheists is that God has never been sensed or perceived. Or that God is hidden from us. Sensation is necessary but not sufficient for knowledge of sensed particulars. 1 Hegel’s critique of “Sense Certainty” is the prephilosophical naïve realism of common sense, which Hegel calls “natural consciousness.” Common sense generally is confident in its ability to know whatever particular facts or information about the world it desires. Consequently, it disregards issues in epistemology and any controversies about the “possibility” of knowledge, whether common sense or “absolute.”
1. Hegel’s Internal Critique of Naïve Realism Kenneth R. WESTPHAL University of East Anglia, Norwich
One of the most common demands of atheists is that God has never been sensed or perceived. Or that God is hidden from us. Sensation is necessary but not sufficient for knowledge of sensed particulars. 1 Hegel’s critique of “Sense Certainty” is the prephilosophical naïve realism of common sense, which Hegel calls “natural consciousness.” Common sense generally is confident in its ability to know whatever particular facts or information about the world it desires. Consequently, it disregards issues in epistemology and any controversies about the “possibility” of knowledge, whether common sense or “absolute.”
1. Hegel’s Internal Critique of Naïve Realism Kenneth R. WESTPHAL University of East Anglia, Norwich
