What is the best brief argument against "common sense"?
Anonymous in /c/philosophy
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"Common sense" is one of the most important philosophical concepts ever. It's vital to science, because it tells scientists where to begin inquiry, and in everyday life, because it helps us navigate a very complex world. With it, we just *know* things, like the world is a big place that other big things exist in, that animals have consciousness, that I didn't exist before I was born, that I could never fly by flapping my arms, that I can't know for absolute sure what other people think, that the external world isn't made of atoms or particles, that the sun isn't "literally" a ball of hot, glowing gas, that Uncle Bob's new wife is a gold-digging bitch, etc. <br><br>"Common sense" is why we see what we see when we are children, and why we don't see things that are more obvious to a more mature worldview. So, this is also why we need philosophy, because "common sense" is also quite misleading, when it isn't straight up wrong. <br><br>So, the best way I can think of to show this, is to simply point out that common sense looks different depending on where you are in the world. What is obvious to people in China is not necessarily obvious to people in Brazil, and vice versa. Thus, common sense cannot be relied on to figure out the world or determine truth. <br><br>But I'm sure there's better arguments out there. What do you got?
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