Descartes Question: Is Descartes successful in overcoming his doubts about the

senses?

Intro:

- Descartes’ (1596-1650) significant questioning of Aristotle’s, Plato’s beliefs

- First philosopher mind-body problem

- Identity mental not material (unlike Thomas Aquinas)

- Meditations on First Philosophy (1641)

- Extreme scepticism, not sceptic

- 4 doubts (disagreement of the learned, deceit of the senses, dream & demon
arguments) on sources of groups of beliefs, not individual

Main body:

“I realised that it was necessary once in the course of my life to demolish everything
completely and start again right from the foundations if I wanted to establish
anything at all in the sciences that was stable and likely to last.” (First Meditation)

- Senses usually right but we can’t be certain – example: defected retina

“I have sometimes found that these senses played me false, and it is prudent never to
trust entirely those who have once deceived us.”

- Dream argument:

“How often, asleep at night, am I convinced of just such familiar events-that I am

here in my dressing gown, sitting by the fire-when in fact I am lying undressed in
bed!” – Descartes

“…it is usually easy to distinguish dreams from reality because dreams are full of
weird ideas.” - Nigel Warburton

- Divine guarantee. Still potential certainties: math, external world (dreams must be
like real world else how can we fathom the images?)

“…can one ask oneself to imagine one is dreaming unless one is certainly
conscious?” – Norman Malcolm

- Demon Argument: Deceiving demon of utmost power and cunning. Ultimate in

scepticism. Sturdier than Dream; dualism – demon could exploit link. Could deceive
us of anything – nothing certain. Knowledge through senses & through reasoning
separate e.g. Leibniz’ vérités de fait and vérités de reason. Analytic statements e.g.
“The Princess is the daughter of the Queen” seem certain.

- Descartes’ belief in God: Would not allow demon, being supremely good.

Conclusion:

- Descartes felt he succeeded but belief in the Divine Guarantee was necessary.

“to complete the sceptic outlook one must commit suicide” – Friedrich Hegel