"A very good book. Anyone interested in skepticism will want to read it....The book, though of great interest
to professionals, could also be used...as a central text in epistemology courses at any level."
--Teaching Philosophy
"Stroud has succeeded in achieving his goals. He has written a probing work that engages the reader and that
forces him to rethink scepticism. The style is wonderfully clear, and the text abounds with helpful examples. One
finishes the book with a strong sense that scepticism is worth taking seriously."
--International Studies in Philosophy
"A major contribution to the study of epistemological skepticism regarding the existence of the external world.
His revolutionary approach should not be ignored by any serious discusion of the topic."
--Nous
"A marvel of philosophical reasoning...A tour de force of subtle philosophical analysis."
--Academic Printing and Publishing
Oxford University Press Web Site, May, 2000
Summary
This book raises questions about the nature of philosophy by examining the source and significance of one central
philosophical problem: how can we know anything about the world around us? Stroud discusses and criticizes the
views of such philosophers as Descartes, Kant, J.L. Austin, G.E. Moore, R. Carnap, W.V. Quine, and others.
