FREE ESSAY ON DESCARTES

DESCARTES

Rene Descartes is often referred to as the father of modern philosophy. Although some
controversy exist over the appropriateness of such a label one can hardly dispute the
fact that his approach to philosophy was dramatically different than many of his
contemporaries. Descartes grew tired of how dogmatically the ideologies of past
philosophers were presented and how dissimilar and unsystematic each was. Breaking free
of the custom of merely reworking prior philosophical doctrines Descartes took a fresh
approach to discovering knowledge, truth, and understanding. He disregarded the classic
texts in favor of what he called "the great book of the world." In his travels though he
found no more unity of notions among the public sector than he did of the philosophers he
held with such reverence. This lack of a unifying truth among both philosophers and the
commoner troubled Descartes. He began questioning all that was presented to him and, in
the end, found mathematics and geometry to provide the only absolute truths. Enamored
with the systematic clearness of mathematical propositions he attempted to incorporate
such a method into philosophy. And hence we have Descartes' Meditations on First
Philosophy. 
As a student Descartes discovered no continuity of truth among neither his masters and
contemporaries nor among the common people. Throughout his life Descartes encountered
numerous situations where commonly held truths turned out, upon further consideration and
meditation, to be false. So Descartes began to doubt, but to simply label him a skeptic
would be a grave injustice to the extent of his doubt. Upon reaching retirement Descartes
began paying closer attention to the great accumulation of false truths he had acquired.
Overwhelmed by the credulousness of the world, he temporarily entered into a state in
which he asserted "that there is nothing of all that I formerly believed to be true of
which it is impossible to doubt." One must make note of his temporary immersement into
such a state; for Descartes himself admits that it would be ludicrous for one to go
through life perpetually doubting everything. Having made this point clear Descartes
does, for a brief stint, doubt everything. He questioned authority and the power
enshrined in authority figures such as Aristotle and Aquinas. Along with authority he is
hesitant to accept the notions and ideas of other individuals because such things may not
be commonly held as self-evident. Astoundingly Descartes even questions that which we
often consider most genuine and obvious; that which is perceived through the senses,
tactile, olfactory, gustatory, visual, and auditory sensations. At this point in his
theory he cannot be sure that anything associated with the world around him actually
exists. So often our senses perceive us, such as an amputee who feels a pain or itch
where his/her limb once was. He questions also whether or not we can be assured of a
waking state, for in our dreams we perceive objects, and as if in our dreams cannot our
imagination constantly be creating the objects we perceive. Descartes was leery of
scientific hypotheses as well for the very reason that they so often are based on
observations of objects which he cannot be assured exist. He even goes so far as to doubt
mathematics; not pure math which he so privileged such as geometry, but the most simple
calculations and principles often recalled directly from memory. Such doubt can exist
because often mistakes are made in such rudimentary calculations. Descartes credits these
fundamental errors to an evil genius, perhaps the antithesis of our perceptions of God,
who plants these erroneous conceptions into our mind. Citing how often he is deceived
Descartes even calls into to questions the existence of God. If God is all knowing and
all good how can one be deceived, why not an evil Deity? As earlier stated Descartes does
not advise or prescribe a constant state of doubt such as this for one would certainly be
driven to the fringes of insanity.
At this point Descartes as established his theory of systematically doubting everything
conceivable in our world, and even those things unworldly; God and a Satan-like figure.
It is this very system of doubt however which accounts for the existence of at least one
thing in the universe; Descartes. To doubt is to think, and to think is to exist. Cogito
Ergo Sum, I think therefore I am, possibly Descartes most profound contribution to modern
philosophy. A thinking thing is what Descartes calls himself at this point. An ambiguous
thing, no mention of extension, figure, embodiment, or form of any kind, for thoughts can
presumably exist without body. A thing which doubts, understands, affirms, denies, wills,
refuses, imagines, and feels. As a result of these characteristics Descartes, and only
Descartes, or the thing that is Descartes, necessarily exists, for through the
aforementioned attributes all else in Descartes world can theoretically be manifested
solely from his thoughts. However because he does have conceptions of an outside world
some faculty of his existence must be perpetuating them or sensing them, so at least he
must exist. It would be a grave contradiction for Descartes to think that he is not a
thinking thing. It seems this affirmation of the cogito is the prime conclusion drawn
from his systematic doubt methodology. He proposes doubting as a type of thought, and he
is well aware of his abilities to doubt and this awareness necessitates his existence. At
this point nothing else exists save a thinking thing, most likely a reference to mind. 
After ordaining the cogito Descartes sticks to the mathematical method he envied so, and
attempts to establish a criterion which can serve to prove the existence of other truths.
This criterion he establishes is the standard of clear and distinct ideas. The only
truths in the world are those which are conceived both clearly and distinctly. Descartes
defines a clear idea as "that which is present and apparent to an attentive mind." He
defines distinct ideas as those "so precise and different from all other objects that it
contains within itself nothing but what is clear." The cogito passes this standard as
Descartes is clearly aware of his thinking existence and also his distinction from all
else in the world. To be true, an idea must be self-evident as well as explicitly
displaying a distinct cause and contextual set of consequences. With this test Descartes
can continue on his sojourn to discover truth. 
As seems customary of philosophers, Descartes addresses the age-old controversy
concerning the existence of God. At this juncture Descartes has mentioned two possible
deities, an omnipotent, omniscient Being, and a contrasting "malignant demon." It appears
that both cannot co-exist so the affirmation of one denies the existence of the other. He
questions where his thinking existence came from. His parents possibly, but only in a
physical, temporary sense. Descartes is searching for a sustaining cause; hence we arrive
at his ontological argument. Descartes has an idea of a perfect Being and attempts to
assert His reality. This conception of a perfect being with infinite, eternal, and
perfect qualities and characteristics must exist outside of Descartes thoughts. Existence
is a necessity for an infinitely perfect Being, because Descartes has already established
his own existence, and if God did not and Descartes does, Descartes would be more perfect
than God. To avoid a solipsistic view such as this Descartes affirms a perfect Being
necessarily exists as existence is a quality of perfection. To understand this argument
Descartes grants the ability for a finite individual to comprehend perfection and
infinity which to some, including myself, seems a bit suspect. 
This confirmation of God's existence denies the existence of an evil genius but the
question still remains of where error comes from. In lieu of the confirmation of a
perfect sustaining Being, how can deception and error exist. Descartes shifts the blame
of error from an outside entity to some cause within himself. He attributes error to his
powers of reason and will. Reason, according to Descartes, allows one to conceive true
ideas clearly and distinctly. Will on the other hand is one's infinite ability to choose,
commit, or consent to a particular course of action. Each decision or thought process
involves a dichotomous relationship where will and reason interact. Erroneous judgments
and decisions occur when will extends outside the realm of reason, or what ideas are
known both clearly and distinctly. Whereas one's will is infinite, one's reason is
constrained to discrete clear and distinct concepts. Error stems from will working where
reason has not and cannot. Supposedly as long as one chooses courses of action within the
realm of clear and distinct ideas no mistakes will occur.
What else can we know clearly and distinctly in the world besides our own existence and
that of God? It is here where Descartes returns to his assertion that his conception of
objects that surround him can theoretically be nothing more than thoughts and need not be
objective realities. Descartes calls such an action as creating an outside reality
imagination, or an inward or internal application of the mind. This virtue of imagination
accounts for the corporeal existence of objects such as triangles as well as abstract
ideas such as chiliogons. A distinction exists however between triangles and chiliogons,
as triangles are encountered in reality whereas a chiliogon cannot be encountered. This
point may contribute a bit of empiricism to Descartes' theory as experience with an
object allegedly confirms its existence outside of the mind. A differentiation exists
between what he perceives and that which he conceives. It is here we come upon his notion
of primary and secondary qualities. Primary qualities are always perceived clearly and
distinctly and include figure, extension, motion, and quantity. Secondary qualities
appear to be derived from the primary qualities and include taste, smell, sound, and
texture. Since primary qualities pass the criterion for clear and distinct ideas and are
associated with corporeal bodies it follows that corporeal bodies must exist as God is
not a deceiver. Extension is the essence of body and is conceived clearly and distinctly,
and we have the causal inference of objects existence, objects must exist. Operating
within the context of clear and distinct ideas our will commits to the existence of
objects and a Holy contradiction would ensue if we were mistaken.
From the confirmation of corporeal objects Descartes considers substance defining it as
"an existent thing which requires nothing but itself to exist." Similar to the standard
of distinct ideas each particular substance is also independent of all others. Descartes'
conception of substance is important when considering his view on the relationship
between mind and body. One can clearly and distinctly understand the attributes of
thought and ex