Continued from Knowledge (Part III)
Another philosopher, René Descartes (1596-1650), had a distinctive perspective on knowledge. He believed that knowledge was a matter of certainty, and that the only way to achieve such certainty was through rational inquiry and doubt.
Cogito, ergo sum
Descartes is a rationalist philosopher. He was known for his method of radical doubt, which involved questioning everything he knew in order to arrive at a foundation of knowledge that could not be doubted. He believed that all knowledge should be based on indubitable, self-evident truths, or what he called "clear and distinct" ideas. In other words, knowledge had to be based on ideas that were so clear and distinct that they could not be doubted.
Descartes believed that the human mind was capable of arriving at such knowledge through the use of reason alone, independent of sensory experience. He argued that this was possible because the human mind had an innate knowledge of certain truths, such as the existence of the self and the idea of God.
In Descartes' philosophy, knowledge was not just a matter of accumulating information, but it was a matter of using reason to arrive at clear and distinct ideas that could serve as the foundation for all other knowledge. He believed that knowledge was the key to unlocking the mysteries of the universe, and that it was essential for living a meaningful and fulfilling life.
According to Descartes, in order to understand the world, we need to suspend all our judgment around us. He defined perfect knowledge in terms of doubt. What we believe based on our senses do not meet the standard and we do not know anything bases on our senses.
Descartes's theory of knowledge is based on skepticism. To him, the physical world does not lead to knowledge. Instead, it is our mind that rationally seeks knowledge. Ideas are rooted in doubts, which is the inherent nature of our minds. It is the mind's reasoning that will lead to knowledge, even without the physical reality.
Descartes wrote that conviction (persuasio) has reasons that will lead us to doubts, but knowledge (scientia) is a conviction that will not be shaken by any other stronger reasons.
In his 'Discours de la Methode' (Discourse of Methods), Descartes wrote:
Ainsi, à cause que nos sens nous trompent quelquefois, je voulus supposer qu'il n'y avait aucune chose qui fût telle qu'ils nous la font imaginer; Et parce qu'il y a des hommes qui se méprennent en raisonnant, même touchant les plus simples matières de Géométrie, et y font des Paralogismes, jugeant que j'étais sujet à faillir autant qu'aucun autre, je rejetai comme fausses toutes les raisons que j'avais prises auparavant pour Démonstrations; Et enfin, considérant que toutes les mêmes pensées que nous avons étant éveillés nous peuvent aussi venir quand nous dormons, sans qu'il y en ait aucune raison pour lors qui soit vraie, je me résolus de feindre que toutes les choses qui m'étaient jamais entrées en l'esprit n'étaient non plus vraies que les illusions de mes songes. Mais aussitôt après je pris garde que, pendant que je voulais ainsi penser que tout était faux, il fallait nécessairement que moi qui le pensais fusse quelque chose; Et remarquant que cette vérité, je pense, donc je suis, était si ferme et si assurée, que toutes les plus extravagantes suppositions des Sceptiques n'étaient pas capables de l'ébranler, je jugeai que je pouvais la recevoir sans scrupule pour le premier principe de la Philosophie que je cherchais.
According to Descartes, sometimes our senses deceive us. This happens because nothing actually exists in reality as how they are presented to us. Some people errs in their reasoning and fall into illogical reasoning. Descartes is convinced that he is also exposed to errors like the others. As such, he rejected reasonings as false. He considered that the same thoughts is experienced whether he is awake or asleep. Objects that entered his mind when he is awake is no more truth than the illusions in his dreams. Although he would like to consider them as false, yet they are something that he should observe as truth.
He asserts 'je pense, donc je suis' in French, which means 'I think, therefore I am'.
He was so certain of what he thinks and of its evidence that no ground of doubt by any skeptics is capable to shake it off. That was his first principle of philosophy which he reiterated in Latin as 'cogito, ergo sum' in his book Meditationes de prima Philosophia (Meditations on First Philosophy).
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