Introduction
Problems raised by reflective thought
Epistemology defined: a distinct discipline from metaphysics
Part I: Foundations of Belief
Doubt, Opinion, Conviction, Certitude
Truth, Error, Ignorance
Irresistible Certitude vs Freely Formed Convictions
Role of intellectual and moral discipline
Part II: Method and Skepticism
Subject and object of knowledge
Limits and legitimate use of methodic doubt (e.g., Descartes)
Critique of skepticism; subjective necessity & test of inconceivability
Part III: Kant and A Priori Knowledge
General outline and critique of Kant’s theory of knowledge
A priori synthesis: singular judgments, grades of necessity
Scholastic account of universals, abstraction, moderate realism
Examination of causal/nexus concepts.

Peter Coffey’s Epistemology (Vol. 1) is a scholastic philosophical text that systematically explores how humans come to know. It opens with core epistemic concepts—like doubt and certitude—and examines the interplay of intellectual discipline and moral judgment in belief formation.
Coffey scrutinizes methodological skepticism (especially Cartesian doubt), arguing against radical skepticism and defending a moderate realist stance: knowledge reflects real objects, mediated through the mind’s active conceptual faculties.
A substantial portion critically examines Kant’s epistemology. Coffey evaluates Kant’s views on a priori judgments, universal concepts, abstraction, and causal necessitation, contrasting them with Scholastic realism.