Chisholm’s The Problem of Criterion (Abre Los Ojos) Movie
The film Abre Los Ojos ends after Cesar decides to wake up from his dream. We do not get to see what happens after he is told, “Open your eyes”, but suppose that he wants to know whether he is still dreaming. Chisholm might explain Cesar’s situation as an example of the ‘Problem of the Criterion’. Explain how Cesar’s case illustrates this problem, and how the three responses to the problem discussed by Chisholm might relate to the film. Your discussion should address the following:
– What is the Problem of the Criterion, and how is it relevant to Cesar’s predicament at the end of the film?
-What are the three different responses to the problem that Chisholm describes, and might each attempt to answer the question of how Cesar can know whether he is dreaming?
-Which approach does Chisholm favor, and what might an objection to his approach look like?
Solution Preview
According to Chisholm (1989), the problem of criterion is a dilemma that revolves around how people define the knowledge and what are the criteria for defining what knowledge is. This problem can, therefore, be defined as two questions which include what do we know and how can we decide on what we know? With these two questions it is impossible to answer the first one without answering the second one first.
(635 words)