Why the most rational minds choose to withhold their final verdict on everything
In short: Suspension of judgment is more than just indecision; it is a deliberate, active state of mind. By resisting the urge to form premature conclusions, thinkers from ancient skeptics to modern scientists create the necessary space to verify facts, eliminate cognitive biases, and build knowledge upon a foundation of genuine certainty.
At its core, the suspension of judgment—often called epoché in the tradition of Pyrrhonism—is a rational strategy to avoid prejudice. While we often feel an internal pressure to resolve doubt immediately, thinkers like Charles Sanders Peirce argued that true inquiry is not about finding truth for its own sake, but about moving from the irritation of doubt to a secure belief. The scientific method formalizes this process, requiring researchers to withhold final conclusions until observations have been rigorously tested and peer-reviewed.
In the 17th century, René Descartes elevated this practice into a formal methodology known as Cartesian doubt. In his 1641 work, Meditations on First Philosophy, he sought to rebuild his entire system of knowledge from the ground up. By treating even his most basic sensory perceptions as potentially unreliable—using thought experiments like the possibility of a deceptive 'evil demon' or the confusion of dreams—he aimed to strip away all false opinions. This hyperbolic doubt was not meant to leave him in a state of permanent uncertainty, but to ensure that whatever he eventually accepted as true was beyond any reasonable doubt.
Contemporary philosophers continue to debate the nature of this mental state. Ralph Wedgwood has proposed that suspending judgment is a specific propositional attitude toward the truth of a claim. However, Jane Friedman offers a different perspective, arguing that it is a 'question-directed attitude.' Rather than being a passive void, she suggests that suspending judgment is an active, inquiring state of mind characterized by a heightened sensitivity and openness to new information. Whether applied in a courtroom to ensure a fair trial or in a laboratory to ensure objective results, the ability to pause before deciding remains a vital intellectual tool for navigating a complex world.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Suspension of judgment
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