Epistemology

Epistemology (from the Greek epistēmē meaning knowledge), also known as the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy that has traditionally concerned itself with the nature, sources, and limits of human knowledge. In this narrow sense, epistemology is a specific disciplinary specialty that does not relate directly to political thought. Political thinkers have, however, been concerned with the theory of knowledge, and epistemic questions have often taken center stage in the history of our discipline. Recent developments in epistemology, sociopolitical theory, and the sociology of knowledge have also highlighted the intimate connections between the nature, production, and meaning of knowledge on the one hand, and the structures and relations of interests and power that constitute the material and ideational context wherein knowledge is produced, on the other. To this extent, epistemology can be viewed as both a central component and object of political thought itself.