If you're seeing this message, it means we're having trouble loading external resources on our website.

If you're behind a web filter, please make sure that the domains *.kastatic.org and *.kasandbox.org are unblocked.

Main content

Epistemology: The Preface Paradox

Everybody has false beliefs, including you. But that means everyone's beliefs are self-contradictory. If we wrote down everything you believe in a book, we'd have to include one more statement in the book's preface: "some of the statements in this book are false". In this Wireless Philosophy video, Jonathan Weisberg (University of Toronto) explains the infamous "Paradox of the Preface", and what it might teach us about belief, reason, and logic.

Want to join the conversation?

Video transcript