A Priori Knowledge

Abstract This article addresses the question of whether a priori knowledge exists. Since one cannot determine whether such knowledge exists without knowing what such knowledge is, it begins by providing an analysis of the concept a priori knowledge. It utilizes that analysis to show that the traditional arguments, both for and against, the a priori are not convincing. It concludes by offering an alternative strategy for defending the existence of a priori knowledge. Although the questions about the relationship between the a priori and the nonepistemic concepts of necessity and analyticity are not the primary targets of this article, they are addressed here as they are relevant to analyzing the concept of a priori knowledge or to determining whether such knowledge exists.