Giving a Shit: A Theory of Care and Epistemic Virtue on Social Media

Britt, Peyton

Giving a Shit: A Theory of Care and Epistemic Virtue on Social Media

Persistent URL

https://dspace.allegheny.edu/handle/10456/54729

Author(s)

Britt, Peyton

Date Issued

December 15, 2021

Abstract

In light of the proliferation of misinformation, the rise of post-truth, and the disconcerting persistence of patently false beliefs and absurd ideas, especially in the context of social media, I argue for the necessity of care in epistemology, conceiving of care as an epistemic virtue. Acknowledging that social media has created unique challenges to building knowledge, I then use my theory of care as the basis for an analogous theory that applies to this new context, calling this model “giving a shit.” In my first chapter, I define my five-faceted theory of care in order to develop a care-based approach to epistemology, inspired by care ethics. I argue that care must come both before and after truth, in the sense that care motivates the pursuit of knowledge and that knowledge informs how we practically approach caring for others. In my second chapter, I proceed with an account of epistemic vices and virtue, first through general discussion of Aristotelian vices and virtue, then with a brief catalogue of relevant epistemic vices. In my third chapter, I analyse the epistemic conditions of social media, as well as the possibility for caring relations in this environment. I conclude that these conditions are alarming, supporting this conclusion with a number of examples of the warped pseudo- and para- social relationships that can be formed on social media. I provide an overview of major social media platforms, particularly how their algorithms encourage lack of care and poor caring. In my final chapter, I determine the extent to which my theory of care is applicable to a social media context. Finding that it is not, I propose a model for understanding relations on social media, casting these as belonging to different varieties of Aristotelian friendship. I call this model “giving a shit.”

Major

Philosophy

Honors

Philosophy, 2022

First Reader(s)

Palmer, Eric