I Think, Therefore I am
Rene Descarte called “father of modernity”
influenced by the “era of doubt” during the medieval period
there was tyranny during this church period because nicolaus copernicus discovered something that challenges what the church teaches (heliocentric theory proved geocentrism wrong )
Made people trust the church “less” or at least doubt what they’ve taught
Rene Descarte wanted to make a philosophy that isn’t bounded by authority, religion, nationality or by wealth (transcedental)
Reneissance is called rebirth because of the rebirth of curiosity, it died in medieval times
we have supreme sources of knowledge (but it
rationalism and empiricism
rationalism is our reasoning and empiricism is our experiences, he connected these two things together
because of this science follows rationalism
John Locke disagrees, he believes that empiricism is “better”
descarte things empiricim shouldnt be taken certain or factual since it can be deceived (explains in Meditation I)
You have to experience a dream to know you’re dreaming, so empiricism thinks that rationalism is built on experiences
Dogmatism vs Skepticism: The dead end
dogmatism is close mindedness, refusing other ideas because you stick with what you know (this is like medieval times) refusing something outside the books
Doubting anything without evidence If you didn’t experience it then what? It doesn’t mean it didn’t/did happen. Skepticism is tied to empiricism
so basically from the first meditation wher ehe says the senses can be deceiving, his certainty is now weakend due to that discovery. His mentality now is that he now rejects anything that could be wrong, anything that isnt absolute. Just like archimedes he hopes that he finds the "lever" (something that is certain and absolute) and when he does find it, it will allow him to achieve great thingss (move the world). He then further reaffirms his ideas, he will never trust his own senses, and what his body experiences, and maybe that the idea that nothing can be trusted, is the actual certainty. start-24
Descartes then realizes, how does he know that his thoughts can be trusted, he then says that, is there not a god or higher being thats putting these ideas into his head? but then he questions it further, that assumig God is putting this in his head could be something that can be doubted so he says that maybe his ability to think and form thoughts is "certain". He basically then states that maybe his sense of self is so intertwined with his body and senses that, if he were to fully reject all of it, would that mean he doesn't exist? If he refuses everything his senses offer, if he believes the information created through his senses are nothing more than an illuson then does he exist in this world? No, he exists because to be deceived means there is something that is being deceived, his thoughts are his own, and as long as he thinks then he exists, and that is certain. 25
descartes basically argues that although he has proved his existence "I am I exist" he is yet to understand what "I" is, before his meditation he would think that he is a human being, a rationale animal. If we were to take the simplest answer based on what we kow, it would be that Him being alive is "I". His entirety his limbs, the mechanic movement of the body all of this is proof
he then proceeds to categorize the non mechanical properties as something connected to the soul, such as nourishment and the senses. when definining the body it can be explained as something that is bounded by a physical shape, something that exists because it takes up space, something entirely excluded from these non physical attributes
He reiterates his previous points, there may be a supreme being that is deceiving him therefore the things his body has those properties like senses, cannot be trusted, (brain in a vatt, what if the deceiver is just creating illusions that his body is real). If this is the case then the things attributted to the soul like nourishment also cannot be trusted since it requires a body. But, what about the ability to think? Tis is something that cannot be taken away, If he is himself, if he exists, how long will he exist? of course for as long as he can think. A person is a thinking thing (something that can think) a mind, or a soul, or an intellect.
Descartes argues that his “self” is not defined by his physical body — even without a body, he is still something. He can only pass judgment on what he knows with certainty, and the only thing he knows is that he exists. As he tries to imagine what this “I” truly is, he realizes that the very act of imagining goes against what he believes in. Imagination depends on sensory information and bodily images, which are unreliable and possibly illusory. he connects this with “dreams”, if someone wakes up from a dream and they try to recall the dream which is unclear to them, its better to go back to sleep to see if the dream reveals itself more clearer to them rather than just imagine what you dreamt of since its an uncertain thing. Therefore, anything reached through imagination must be disregarded, and he must rely solely on pure, rational thought to understand the true nature of the “I.”
if his thoughts are truly his, such as doubting, imagining, his senses and not something a god is putting in his head, how can he tell that it is truly his and not not the latter? It is him doing these acts that make it his, even if what he thinks or perceives is false performing these cognitive functions proves that there is something (himself) that performs these action, the process of imagining is still thinking, therefore "I" the thinking self is the same thing that absorbs the information of the senses not something seperate like the body and soul. Ex. he touches a hot surface his sneses say its hot, therefore his mind registeres its hot and you flinch away, so the act of sensing is real and something he expereiences
going back to earlier "The things experienced from the body ultimately are passed to the mind, and that’s what makes his surroundings real even if it is an illusion" this ties in with the wax, a piece of wax taken from a honeycomb, it has a smell, shape, texture, all of which are properties that can validate it as a "body" he then places the wax near a fire, the flavor disappears, the smell fades, the shape changes, etc. The wax even when its properties are changed are still the same piece of wax everyone knows it, but when looking at it through your senses obviously it wasnt the same wax from earlier since it changes. the senses associated with the wax is processed by your mind to come to the conclusion that it is still the same piece of wax
Descartes’ takeaway is that he exists because he thinks. The very act of thinking doubting, imagining, understanding, perceiving proves his existence. As long as he is capable of thought, he is. Moreover, the action of thinking confirms that these thoughts are his own, not merely illusions placed in his mind by a deceiver or god. The thinking self (the mind) is, therefore, the most reliable and certain foundation of knowledge far more certain than anything external, such as the body or material objects.
This connects to his wax example: when Descartes observes wax melting, all its sensory properties its smell, color, shape, and texturechange. Yet he still knows it is the same wax. This recognition cannot come from the senses or imagination, since they cannot account for all the possible transformations of the wax. Instead, it comes from the mind’s judgment, or what Descartes calls “the inspection of the mind.” Thus, our understanding of objects is not sensory but cognitive.
He then extends this insight to perception itself. When he looks out a window and sees people passing by, what he actually sees are shapes, coats, and hats—but he judges them to be people. This shows that perception is not purely sensory; it involves a mental act of judgment. In short, perceiving is also thinking.
the mind is more reliable to external bodies since bodies can change, we cant rely on anything except what we do know
Joakim Abutin’s understanding
Descartes after realizing that everything is uncertain, even his senses as it can deceive him now chooses to disregard them completely,
He says that if he finds something universally certain it will allow him to achieve great things (Archimedes)
he doubts now that maybe some sort of evil God or higher being is placing these thoughts in his head, but here are what he thinks first, God wouldn't do that to him as God is a all good, and second since he is doubting his very thoughts, then the only thing he can deem certain is that he is capable of thinking.
But since his senses are something intertwined with the body to remove it means his body is to be doubted as well, so he questions his existence But to be deceived means there is someone to deceive. As long as he is able to think, to doubt, to rationalize does he continue to exist
When Descartes says "I exist" He must examine it at a rational level, my imagining what he is it goes against what he says, since imagining is a product of the senses.
Like a dream if you don't remember the exact details its better to try and sleep to see if it reveals itself rather than just try to piece it together
He comes to the conclusion that the self isn't limited by a physical body. If he truly is thinking and doubting and isn't something being put into his head by a God then there must be something that performs these acts, and thats his THINKING SELF, something separate from his body it is the judgement to the information your senses give (wax experiment)