Descartes: Reason, Method, and the Existence of God
Descartes
The Unity of Reason and Method, Doubt, and First Truth
Descartes believed that reason is unique, so wisdom needed to be unique too, and there would be only one science. Reason is known through two ways: intuition (perception of ideas directly, immediately ruling out any possibility of error; its act is itself evidence) and deduction (intuition laying successive passes of a term/idea to the next, and the memory involved). Having only one science, there is a unique method of applying these
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Plato (427-347 BCE)
Plato believed that human need is the origin of society. Man needs many things, and his capacity for action is limited, so he needs society. The individual depends on the state. The virtue and happiness of the individual depend on the virtue and happiness of the state. The polis will only be just if a relationship based on duty exists between the different social classes that constitute it.
- Wisdom: Wise Ruler
- Fortitude: Warrior (Irascible)
- Temperance: Artisan (Concupiscible)
The individual
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The Human Factor in Relationships
Social life defines how humans live and interact within social groups. These groups relate to other groups and municipalities, forming provinces and even nations. Life, to which man is subordinated by his natural features, requires him to act as a member of a social group and not as an isolated individual. His actions are aligned with others. The human factor is of radical importance in relationships, imposing rules to establish a basic order. Without this order,
Read MoreNietzsche’s Philosophy: A Critique of Traditional Thought
Nietzsche’s Critique of Traditional Philosophy
The Idiosyncrasies of Philosophers
Nietzsche criticizes the idiosyncrasies of philosophers, whose fundamental error, Egyptianism, rejects evolution, history, sense, and time. This rejection stems from opposing the notions of being and becoming, concluding that what is not, becomes, and what becomes, is not. Consequently, the senses are deemed misleading for showing change and are considered immoral. This leads to contempt for humanity, as people trust
Read MoreSources, Forms, and Classification of Knowledge
What is Knowledge?
To know is to be in contact with reality in order to understand it. It also relates to other concepts: to make conscious what is known, to systematize what is known. Therefore, to question what knowledge is, is a critical examination. Knowledge is an apprehension of reality through which reality is fixed in an individual, expressed, and transmitted to other subjects, incorporated into a system and tradition.
Sources of Knowledge
Sensitivity and reason. Experience provides basic things.
Read MoreSaint Augustine’s Philosophy: Reason, Faith, and Existence
Saint Augustine: Reason and Faith
For Christians, the truth is found in the Bible. Augustine sees a reconciliation between reason and faith, so why not reach where faith reaches? Saint Augustine distinguishes three steps:
- The reason helps man to achieve faith.
- Faith guides the reason.
- The reason, in turn, helps to further clarify the contents of faith.
Saint Augustine summarized this process in two propositions: the prevalence of faith over reason, and reason is an instrument of clarification to the
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