THE ROLE OF EXTERNALISM IN UNSAFE BUT RATIONAL REASONING

Faria’s recent publication aims to show that “if antiindividualismis correct, then the obscurity of validity is more widespread thanwe need to assume for present purposes.” In rejecting “a variety of exculpatingmoves, designed to shield the rationality of the possibly unlucky reasoner,” Fariasuggests that content externalism can drastically affect our self-understandingas rational beings. I am afraid I have to disagree. Faria overintellectualizesreasoning, always performed from the first-person perspective and is subjectto reflexive control by the reasoner. To be sure, content externalism shows thatsound reasoning is contingent on the broad environment and therefore does notdepend exclusively on the logical abilities of the living being but is a matter oflogical luck. Nonetheless, content externalism is no threat to rationality. Mydiagnosis: By adopting Wittgenstein’s strategy of “bringing words back home,” Faria overlooks the achievements of cognitive science: in its simplest form,“transitive inference,” rationality pervades the animal kingdom.