René Descartes: Life, Philosophy, and Historical Context
René Descartes: Life and Times
René Descartes is considered the first philosopher of the modern age and the initiator of one of the fundamental currents that would come to characterize it: rationalism. Born in France in 1596, he graduated in law. After a period spent in the army and then traveling continuously, he established his residence in Paris in 1625. However, in 1629, he moved to Holland, where he settled permanently. In 1649, at the invitation of Queen Christina of Sweden, he moved to Stockholm, where he died in 1650.
Historical and Cultural Context
Historical Context
Descartes’s philosophy developed during a time of crisis: the seventeenth century. This crisis manifested in several ways:
- Demographically: with a significant population decline.
- Economically: with the start of a period of instability.
- Socially: with the outbreak of numerous peasant revolts.
- Politically: with the fall of absolute monarchy in England.
- Ideologically: with the wars of religion.
Cultural Context
The seventeenth century was heavily influenced by the Protestant Reformation. Papal authority and councils were no longer universally accepted. In 1542, Pope Paul III created the “Holy, Roman, and Universal Inquisition,” better known as the “Holy Office,” originally to combat Lutherans and Calvinists. This had a negative effect on intellectual freedom, intimidating thinkers, including Descartes, whose works were included in the “Index of Prohibited Books.”
Another important cultural element was the Baroque, which celebrated excess and dynamism. Buildings became more dynamic with curving lines, and paintings highlighted the contrast of colors, reflecting a sense of instability. Neoclassicism emerged as another cultural factor, attempting to address the crisis reflected in the Baroque through the imposition of law and rational order, a pursuit shared by Descartes. Neoclassicism emphasized order, clarity, and simplicity as a means of organizing the variety of things, albeit through an imposed order and a clarity and simplicity of thought, rather than a natural one.
Key Philosophical Terms
Evidence (Obvious): In a subjective sense, it refers to what is clear and attributable to knowledge. In an objective sense, it refers to the object known. Objectively, the obvious is the object of an intuition of reason: simple natures. Subjectively, the obvious is the result of such intuitive knowledge. For many, the obvious is what is immediately clear. Not all knowledge is obvious, as some knowledge is also obtained through deduction.
Distinct: Features that characterize the ideas and perceptions of the mind (understanding) that “in addition to being clear, are so precise and separated from all others, that they contain nothing but what is clear.” It is through understanding that the distinction of an idea is determined.
Precipitation: An error made by those who forget that their understanding is finite, who are impatient, and who judge what is not yet clearly understood. It also occurs when one does not take the necessary time to derive new knowledge in an orderly manner from prior knowledge. The error is twofold: judging from an idea considered clear and distinct when it is really confusing and obscure, and not following the order necessary for correct analysis and synthesis. Its remedy is circumspection.
Prevention: A defect of reason opposed to precipitation. It is committed by those who do not consider themselves sufficiently capable of judging for themselves and instead follow the judgments of others whom they consider more capable, treating them as teachers. Due to a lack of confidence in their own judgment, those who suffer from prevention refuse to accept the truth of an idea, even when presented clearly and distinctly.
Descartes vs. Aristotle
Aristotle: Believed that humans, due to their ability to move, tend to seek their own end and well-being. He saw the soul as the act of the body, forming a material composite. Aristotle rejected the multiplicity of souls.
Descartes: Sought a starting point, a foundational truth that no one could dispute, which would serve as a basis for deducing all other ideas in a foolproof way. This foundational idea had to be:
- Clear
- Simple
- Distinct from others
- “Intuitive”
- Indubitable
Aristotle was an empiricist, believing that ideas are products of knowledge. He distinguished between accidental and substantial change. Descartes, on the other hand, rejected empiricism.