Phenomenal Conservatism - Criticisms of PC

Criticisms of PC

Critics of Phenomenal Conservatism have argued:

• That the principle is overly liberal, making far too many beliefs count as justified. In particular, PC implies that one is justified in believing a proposition that appears true to one, even in the absence of any reason for thinking that the faculty generating the appearance is reliable.
• That the self-defeat argument unfairly begs the question against skepticism.
• That the self-defeat argument cannot establish that externalist alternatives to PC are self-defeating without appeal to internalist assumptions.
• That the intuitions that seem to favor PC over rival internalist views support views on which fallacious reasoning can count as justified.
• That (in its original formulation) the principle makes inferential beliefs count as foundational.
• That PC enables a belief to be justified even when the relevant appearance (and so the belief) was ultimately caused by epistemically irresponsible behavior, such as wishful thinking.

In addition, as a form of foundationalism, PC is open to some of the common objections to that doctrine.