The problem of solipsism

From what I understand, there are different kinds of solipsism. One kind says you can't know whether there are other minds besides your own. Another says there aren't other minds besides your own. And another says you can't know whether there's anything at all in existence outside of your own mind.

I don't think solipsism of any variety should be a problem. Hardly any of us actually are solipsists. Some people pretend to be solipsists in an effort to save face when they're losing an argument. It's an act of desperation to resort to solipsism. But some people may be just a little cray cray, and maybe they actually are solipsists. If such people exist, they are few and far between.

But I do think solipsism in its different varieties is worth thinking about because it allows us to test and refine our own epitemologies. If you have an epistemology that logically entails some form of solipsism, you shouldn't for that reason embrace solipsism. Instead, you should reject your epistemology. If the epistemology you subscribe to cannot solve the problem of solipsism or if it gives rise to the problem of solipsism, then that shows a deficiency in your epistemology.

So, why reject an epistemology that generates solipsism rather than just embracing solipsism? The reason is because you canot do so honestly. Unless you are one of those rare nutcases out there, you don't honestly think that you are the only mind that exists. And you don't honestly doubt that there are other minds. And you are not agnostic about whether there are other minds. You believe there are other minds. If you are perfectly honest with yourself about that, there probably isn't an argument in the world that can make you think otherwise. So don't play games. Just comes to grips with what you honestly believe, and try to make sense of it.

What you need to do if you find upon honest reflection that you are fairly confident in the existence of other minds (which I am sure you are), but the epistemology you subscribe to doesn't allow you to have any justification for your belief in other minds, is to rethink your epistemology. Spend some time thinking about what it is that justifies your belief in other minds. It is possible to know something without knowing how you know it, so it is fruitful to think about such things.

And if you want a short cut to help you along the way, check out my post, "Working out an epistemology."

And as a somewhat related correlary, you might also check out, "My moral epistemology."