Descartes: Method, Doubt, Cogito, and Impact on Modern Thought
The mechanistic conception of nature and of science as a useful skill to master makes Descartes a pioneer of modern technology. Along with Francis Bacon, he has a conception of science, theoretical but fundamentally practical, conceived as a tool for the domain of nature. In this sense, science becomes art, or science-technology pairing is conceived as a unit. Descartes is also one of the fathers of modern technology and the concept of instrumental reason.
Briefly, we can target these issues to develop
Read MoreEthical Theories: Kant, Rawls, and Moral Frameworks
Ethical Materials and Formal Rationality
Ethical Materials: Purposive rationality (the good and evil are the ends of moral action), priority of happiness, a trend to a heteronomous moral (acting out the nature or God), the goodness is in the contents of the action, hypothetical imperatives language (to act according to maxims that require conditionally) and the Aristotelian tradition. Ethical Formal rationality of ethics (the duty and justice are the criteria for moral action), priority of justice,
Read MorePhilosophical Foundations: From Ancient Greece to Kant
Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle: Foundations of Western Thought
Socrates and Plato, considered founders of Western philosophy, believed in the possibility of acquiring objective, necessary, and universal knowledge. This knowledge, they argued, must be unchanging and permanent, distinct from the fluctuating perceptions of our senses. Plato justified this concept by proposing the existence of two realms: the world of Ideas (inaccessible to the senses) and the sensible world. The world of Ideas, according
Read MoreDescartes’ Method and Philosophy: Reason, Doubt, and God
Descartes’ Method and Philosophy
According to Descartes, reason is the same in all individuals; therefore, the diversity of opinions depends on the manner of conducting reason, i.e., the method. He believes it is necessary to find a method that correctly directs reason to avoid mistakes. This method consists of four rules:
- To accept as true only the obvious (that which is presented clearly and distinctly).
- Analysis of the problems.
- Go from the simple to the complex.
- Check everything so you do not miss
Descartes’ Philosophy: Existence of Self, God, and the World
Principles of Descartes’ Philosophy
To solve this problem, Descartes analyzes the nature of ideas, elements that conform to our thinking. In this analysis, he is trying to reach an external reality. He realizes that all ideas are equal and identifies three types:
- Adventitious ideas: Those coming from outside of our external experience (e.g., the idea of a home).
- Factitious ideas: Those invented or feigned by the mind, built upon other ideas (e.g., the idea of a siren).
- Innate ideas: Those ideas that
Philosophy and Human Thought: Key Concepts and Thinkers
Elements of Philosophical Thought
Information: Philosophy is concerned with the very intelligence, capabilities, and limits of the whole of reality.
Goals: Knowledge and happiness. Truth and goodness. To achieve these goals, fields have been discovered which have become independent of philosophy. All sciences seek to know the truth, but philosophy asks, how can I distinguish the true from the false?
Mental Operations: It is rational thinking, which seeks to know reality, justify knowledge, and justify
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