AN ACTION-ORIENTED ACCOUNT OF KNOWLEDGE: AN ALTERNATIVE APPROACH TO THE GETTIER PROBLEM BASED UPON WANG YANGMING’S PHILOSOPHY

The Gettier problem for the classical analysis of knowledge (also known as the JTB theory) arises from scenarios where a justified true belief is true by chance, and as a result is not plausibly taken to be an instance of knowledge. Epistemologists often address the Gettier problem by positing extra conditions to construct a stable connection between the subject and truth. However, they tend to overlook the dynamic and practical aspects of knowledge, focusing instead on providing a ‘static’ reductive analysis that captures the fixed essence of the concept of knowledge. I critique such limitations and argue that knowledge resists static and fixed definitions, requiring a more dynamic and practice-oriented perspective. In this essay, I provide an alternative approach to understand knowledge with respect to the Chinese philosopher Wang Yangming’s theory of the unity of knowledge and action (zhi xing he yi 知行合一). Submitted: 19 November 2025 Accepted: 27 December 2025