The core problems of sociological and philosophical theories of knowledge remain insoluble and unrelated since both theories start from static models. The problems can be solved - and the respective theories can be related to each other - without undue difficulties if the acquisition of knowledge occurring within societies is conceptualized as a long-term process which, in turn, takes place within societies also considered as long-term processes. This approach adds up to being in close agreement with the evidence. The paper points out what needs to be both unlearned and learned in order to pave the way for such a unified theoretical framework to serve as a guide to - and be corrected by - empirical sociological studies of all kinds of knowledge: scientific and practical, as well as non-scientific or ideological.
sociology of knowledge; sociological theory; sociology