Philosophy 101 Descartes – Flashcards
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Descartes' epistemological goal in the Meditations is to discover a kind of truth which is:
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Unshakeable and incontestably certain.
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The technique used by Descartes to discern what is true is that of:
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Systematic doubt;
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The difficulty Descartes finds with the information we receive from the senses is that:
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he senses deceive us;
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The difficulty Descartes finds with the information we receive from mathematics is that:
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an evil demon could be deceiving us.
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The one truth which Descartes thinks is beyond any possible doubt is:
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I exist;
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In the 3rd Meditation Descartes says that the cause of our idea of God must be:
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God himself;
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In the 5th Meditation. Descartes says that God must exist since He is
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perfect
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Some critics say that Descartes' reasoning is circular, assuming the very thing he wants to prove in order to prove it.
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True
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"Cogito ergo sum" means:
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I think, therefore I am;
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Descartes believes that even though he can doubt many things, he might still not exist at the moment he is doubting.
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False
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Descartes discovers that no matter what might happen, his physical body must always exist.
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False
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To exist, according to Descartes in the 5th Meditation, is:
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better than not to exist;
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The argument for the existence of God in the 5th Meditation is sometimes known as the:
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ontological argument;
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An argument for the existence of God which talks about God as the cause of the universe is called:
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cosmological argument;
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Descartes uses the possibility that he might be dreaming to show that:
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the senses can deceive us;
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A cosmological argument tries to give an account of the universe by
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that God is its cause.
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What is Descartes famous insight?
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"I think, therefore I am"
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Descartes lived in an interesting time of
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Science
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What Revolution was underway when Descartes was a child
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The Copernican Revolution
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During Descartes childhood, what two people showed that Copernicus was right?
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The earth does revolve around the sun rather than vice versa
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What was believed during the time of Aristole and before?
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what we see with our own eyes must be true mainly. ex. sun moves east to west across the sky each day
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During Descartes' childhood most scientist started to believe that things we see
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are not the way they are
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Descartes started to wonder what two things?
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-what is the source of knowledge -what is the source of reality
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He wondered, what is knowledge if not our?
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senses
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what is reality if?
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not the world we see around us
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What is Descartes famous book?
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The Meditations
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In his book, The Meditations, what does he use to answer his questions?
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Methodological Skepticism
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What did Descartes decide to assume?
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everything that can be doubted is actually FALSE.
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How long did Descartes use Methodological Skepticism?
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until he finds something that cannot be doubted. something that is undubitable.
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If Descartes can think of any possible answers that could be wrong, then
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they are in fact wrong and he would go to the next possible answer.
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Where would most people say that knowledge comes from?
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the senses.
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The Copernican Revolution raised serious doubt about the
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the accuracy of our senses.
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Descartes says that in his dreams
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his senses are false. he feels like he is awake, when he is actually sleeping
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T/F Descartes believes that there are times when everyday senses can be doubted
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True.
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Descartes believed that he must look elsewhere for the source of knowledge because
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the senses deceive him.
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T/F Descartes was a mathematican
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True.
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Descartes suggests that _________ may be the source of knowledge.
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mathematics
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Why did Descartes suggest that mathematics may be the source of knowledge?
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because it avoids the dream problem.
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Why does Descartes conclude that mathematics cannot be the source of knowledge?
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He thought that if there could be an evil deceiver that makes him get the answers wrong, but he believes are right. ex. 2+3= 5 but it is not really 5, the deceiver just makes us think it is 5.
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What does the dream problem and the mathematics problem make Descartes believe?
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That he cannot be 100% certain that the world of the senses and mathematics are real
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Cosmological argument
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Name for the kind of argument for God's existence which speaks of God as the cause of the universe
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Systematic Doubt
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The method Descartes uses to discover truth
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Descartes' "ontological" argument for God's existence in the 5th Meditation
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"God is perfect, so He must exist."
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Does "I think, therefore I am," show that anything that exists must think?
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The reason dreams pose a problem for Descartes
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Descartes' argument to show that "I think therefore I am" escapes the problem of the "evil deceiver"
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Deception is a kind of thinking, Even if he is deceived he is still something.
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Philosophical term which describes Descartes' view that reality consists of two kinds of things: mind and matter
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Dualism
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What Descartes believes is the cause of our ideas of material things
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Material things themselves
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Why Descartes thinks mathematical claims might be false
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An "evil deceiver" could be tricking us
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The truth that Descartes believes is beyond any possible doubt
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"I think, therefore I am"
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Name given to the criticism of Descartes that says he assumes the very thing he wants to prove in order to prove it
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The Cartesian Circle (circular reasoning)
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Latin for "I think, therefore I am"
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"Cogito ergo sum"
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Descartes' view on whether humans have free will
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He says we do have free will
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One of Descartes most famous meditations
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2nd Meditation
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Res Cogitans in english is
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"Something that exists"
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Cogito Ergo Sum does not prove
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-Descartes exists -That I existed yesterday or that I will exist tomorrow
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If I am thinking at this moment, then
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I exist at this moment
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Exist as
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"res cogitans"
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What is a thing that thinks?
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It is a thing that doubts, understands, conceives, imagines, perceives
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Anything that does think can prove their existence to
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themselves, not anyone else.
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Uses of Cognito
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-clear and distinct idea (cannot be false) -causes are Greater then effects
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What are the two kinds of existence?
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1. Res Cogitans 2. Res extensa
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Res Cogitans
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things that think
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Res Extensa
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things that are extended in space i.e physical world, body
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What is the one kind of being that is both Res Cogitans and Res Extensa?
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Humans
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Res cogitans and res extensa make up Descartes famous
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Dualism
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what is the two different things interact in humans is called
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problem of interaction and it is still debated today by those who defend dualism
