Perseverance as an Intellectual Virtue Nathan

Much recent work in epistemology has focused on the analysis of cognitive character traits. These traits comprise an important kind of intellectual virtue. 1 Among the intellectual virtues that have received extended treatment in the literature are responsibility, conscientiousness, honesty, courage, open-mindedness, firmness, humility, charity, and wisdom. 2 To my knowledge, no philosopher has undertaken an extended treatment of perseverance as an intellectual virtue. In the present paper, I take up this task. An inquiry into the nature of intellectual perseverance is worthwhile for several reasons. First, as we’ll see below, this virtue has played a crucial role in the history of inquiry. Second, perseverance is importantly related to other intellectual virtues (e.g., courage and practical wisdom) that have already been examined in the literature. We will better understand these virtues for understanding their relations to perseverance. Third, in many ordinary cases, perseverance is conducive to a wide range of epistemic goods (e.g., truth and knowledge). Thus, understanding intellectual perseverance and the goods to which it is a means, can provide at least a modest degree of intellectual guidance. Finally, reflection on perseverance (and on particular examples thereof) can provide motivation to pursue the very virtue under examination.