Essay Descartes - 798 Words

Descartes is famed by is familiar notion, amp;#8220;I think therefore I am (Cogito, ergo sum.).; It is a conclusion he has reached in his second meditation after much deliberation on the existence of anything certain. After he discovers his ability to doubt and to understand , he is able to substantiate his necessary existence as a consequence. What we doubt or understand may not ultimately correspond, but we can never be uncertain that we are in the process of thought. This idea is a major component in Descartesamp;#8217; proof of the external world. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;He relies on the existence of a non-deceiving God to ensure that an external world exists after calling it into doubt by the invocation of the dream†¦show more content†¦Nothing is more obvious than the judgment that this object (rather than something else) grafts its likeness on to me.; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Since however, he has called upon anything to be false that provokes any doubt he does not believe this explanation to be enough for the proof of the external world. Relying on this sort of natural impulse has led him astray in the past, so what is to keep it from happening all the time. He also calls upon the dream argument in this instance. Ideas come to be in dreams independent of external objects and perhaps this is true of ideas when we are awake. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;It seems that Descartes finds it necessary to first establish the existence of a non-deceiving God before he can be assured of the existence of anything beyond himself and his mode of thought. He does this by the rationalization that his perception of God is that of a perfect being. In order for a being to be perfect it must exist. Since he himself is an imperfect being, he can not conceive the idea of perfection on his own. Therefore, it must have come from some other faculty that must be perfect, which is God. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;It is after his proof of the existence of God that Descartes comes to accept that clear and distinct ideas can be trusted. After this deliberation his process of coming to theShow MoreRelatedDescartes Vs. 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ReneRead MoreEssay on Renà © Descartes759 Words   |  4 PagesRenà © Descartes Renà © Descartes was a French philosopher and also mathematician. His method of doubt led him to the famous cogito ergo sum when translated means I am thinking, therefore I exist. This cogito was the foundation for Descartes quest for certain knowledge. He explored doubt and how we can prove our own existence, by taking the first steps of scepticism. His book Meditations On First Philosophy, was written in six parts. EachRead MoreObjections to Descartes’ Interactionism1431 Words   |  6 Pages In the following essay I will be offering some objections to Descartes’ interactionism as is primarily represented in his works The Passions of the Soul, Part I and Correspondence with Princess Elisabeth, Concerning the Union of Mind and Body. I will start by describing the basic features of how Descartes’ notion of interactionism works. 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