Descartes (A2 Module 4)

René Descartes

The philosopher René Descartes (1596-1650) is a figure of immense philosophical importance. He lived during the early part of the 17th century, a century that has come to be known as the century of the "Scientific Revolution". Philosophers and scientists - who were, to a great extent, the same things - threw off old ways of thinking and developed the modern scientific picture of the world we have today.

You will be studying his thought primarily through reading his short book, Meditations on First Philosophy, which we'll abbreviate to Meditations. In the opening paragraphs, Descartes sets himself the project of finding out what - if anything - he can be certain of. Rather than assume that all that he has learned from his teachers must be correct, he begins by questioning what he thinks he knows. In six short chapters, he argues that he can be certain of his own existence, that God exists and finally that the external world around him does. He argues that knowledge begins with reason, not the senses, thus making him a classical Rationalist. The book is well known for introducing the sceptical idea of the 'evil demon' - a proto-Matrix - who is powerful enough to deceive him that all that he takes to be real is an illusion. It is also famous for the line Cogito, ergo sum - I think, therefore I am although, as with many famous one-liners, he didn't actually say it in quite that form.

What You Will Be Studying

You will be studying various themes from the Meditations. You will study the relationship between Descartes' philosophy and the philosophies of his contemporaries as well as links with themes in contemporary philosophy. The topics we will be looking at are as follows (the roman numerals indicate the meditations which are of particular relevance):

1. The Project: I
2. The Method of Doubt: skepticism and its use in the quest for certainty: I
3. The waves of doubt - applications of the method: I
4. The possibility of total deception: I
5. Absolute certainty of the cogito and its implications: II, VI
6. The essential natures of mind and body, the wax example and its purposes: II, VI
7. Arguments for distinguishing mind and body: II, VI
8. Trademark proofs of God's existence: II
9. The ontological argument: V
10. The role of God in Descartes' system: III, V, VI
11. The relation of mind and body; independence and the intermingling thesis: VI
12. The role of the imagination: VI
13. The proof of material things: VI
14. Clarity, Distinctness and Truth: III, IV
15. Freedom*: IV
16. Descartes' rationalism: I-IV

What You Need

You will need to buy a copy of the Meditations. Below are two links to two editions of the Meditations to purchase from Amazon on-line. There will be some copies at the college bookshop. Alternatively, you should be able to find it in a good bookshop. The ISBN numbers are given below. The first is the basic version that is suitable for all your needs. The second is a different translation (Descartes' original was in Latin) with more additional material that is the version an undergraduate would typically have.

• Meditations - Clarke translation (ISBN: 0140447016)
• Meditations - Cottingham translation (ISBN: 0631150463)

Resources

Start here or else click on one of the links below.

• A Brief Biography
• Introduction
• The Project
• Background to the Meditations
• Summary of the Meditations
• The Meditations: paragraph-by-paragraph guide
• Handouts
• Videos of Bernard Williams talking about Descartes
• Videos of Mark Steel talking about Descartes



• Sample Exam Questions

Forward to:
A Brief Biography