Radical skepticism and the shadow of doubt: a philosophical dialogue (HPOD.)

This volume brings something new to epistemology both in content and style.

At the outset we are asked to imagine a person named Vatol who grows up in a world containing numerous people who are brains-in-vats and who hallucinate their entire lives.

Would Vatol have reason to doubt whether he himself is in contact with reality?

If he does have reason to doubt, would he doubt, or is it impossible for a person to have such doubts? And how do we ourselves compare to Vatol? After reflection, can we plausibly claim that Vatol has reason to doubt, but we don't?

These are the questions that provide the novel framework for the debates in this book.