Epoché

Epoché, from the Greek epoche meaning "suspension" or "holding back," is a methodological device in phenomenology used to suspend or bracket judgments about the existence of the external world. The aim is not to deny reality but to set aside natural beliefs and presuppositions so that one can analyze how objects are presented to consciousness and the structures that make experience possible, such as intentionality, perception, and temporality.

The term was introduced and developed by Edmund Husserl in the early 20th century as part of his program of phenomenology. Epoché is closely associated with the phenomenological attitude and is often described as the first step of the phenomenological reduction. By performing epoché, a thinker attempts to shade off the “natural attitude” that presumes objects exist independently of experience, thereby focusing on experiences as they appear.

In practice, epoché is often described together with bracketing (the act of setting aside assumptions) and the subsequent phenomenological reduction, or transcendental reduction, which seeks to reveal how objects are constituted in consciousness. The process is not a simple doubt but a disciplined methodological stance aimed at uncovering the essential structures of experience.

Epoché remains central in phenomenology and has influenced a range of Continental philosophies, including existentialism and hermeneutics, though its execution and interpretation vary among thinkers. Critics argue about the feasibility of complete suspension of presuppositions, yet the method continues to shape analyses of perception and consciousness.