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Is there a particular person or organization associated with the development of Coherentism as a theory?

Harvy Knill

Coherentism, as a theory of knowledge, has been developed by many scholars over the course of history. Therefore, it is difficult to pinpoint a particular person or organization that can be credited with its development.

Some historians of philosophy attribute the origins of coherentism to the German philosopher, George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. In his work, "Phenomenology of Spirit," Hegel posits the idea that knowledge is a product of the coherence of concepts within a system of thought. Hegel's ideas influenced subsequent philosophers, such as J. M. E. McTaggart, who expanded on the concept of coherence as the basis of justification in knowledge.

Other philosophers, such as the American pragmatist, Charles Sanders Peirce, and the British philosopher, Bertrand Russell, also made significant contributions to the development of coherentism. Peirce argued that coherence was not sufficient for knowledge, but that it had to be supplemented by an external reference point, what he called "correspondence." Russell, on the other hand, claimed that coherence could not serve as the basis of knowledge, because a system of false beliefs could also be coherent. Russell believed that knowledge had to be grounded in empirical evidence.

In the 20th century, coherentism was further developed by a number of prominent philosophers, including Wilfrid Sellars, W. V. Quine, and Susan Haack. Sellars argued that coherence was the basis of all human knowledge, including scientific knowledge, and that it was the job of philosophers to articulate the coherence relations between different categories of knowledge. Quine, on the other hand, posited a holistic view of knowledge, claiming that no individual beliefs could be justified in isolation, but had to be evaluated in light of the entire web of beliefs.

Haack developed a more nuanced version of coherentism, which she called "foundherentism." According to Haack, knowledge was based on a combination of coherence and foundational beliefs, which provided a reference point for the coherence relations between other beliefs.

In conclusion, while it is difficult to attribute the development of coherentism to a particular person or organization, it is clear that the theory has been influenced by many prominent philosophers throughout history. Each of these philosophers has contributed to a more nuanced understanding of coherence as a basis for knowledge, and their ideas continue to shape contemporary debates in epistemology.