Rationalism and Descartes: A Modern Perspective
Renaissance Influence (15th-17th Centuries)
Shifting Landscapes
Socio-Political:
From feudalism to absolute monarchy.
Cultural:
From Humanism to Anthropocentrism.
Philosophical:
Transition from medieval to modern thought, focusing on man, history, and nature. Renewal of Platonism.
Religious:
Eras of reform, including Protestantism (Luther, Calvin) and the Catholic Counter-Reformation (Council of Trent).
Cosmological and Scientific Revolution
A burgeoning curiosity for knowledge and intellectual freedom led
Read MoreAncient Greek Philosophy: Key Concepts and Thinkers
Ancient Philosophy
Pre-Socratic Philosophy
For thousands of years, humans explained the world’s workings solely through religious beliefs. The shift towards interpreting nature from a human perspective, rather than relying on gods and priests, gave rise to fundamental philosophical problems, including the nature of the world (cosmology). This early stage of philosophy, known as Pre-Socratic philosophy, primarily focused on understanding nature. It sought a universal law that explained the consistency
Read MoreTranscendental Idealism: Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason
Transcendental Idealism in Kantian Philosophy
The Convergence of Modern Philosophical Currents
Kantian philosophy, also known as Transcendental Idealism, represents the culmination of three major modern philosophical currents: rationalism, empiricism, and Enlightenment. Kant’s assertion that knowledge is limited to experience aligns with empiricism, while his claim that not all knowledge originates from experience reflects rationalism. Influenced by figures like Newton and Rousseau, Kant emphasized
Read MoreRousseau’s Social Contract: Freedom & Equality
Rousseau’s Social Contract: Freedom and Equality
Location and Theme
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a prominent figure in modern philosophy and the French Enlightenment, held a unique position within the movement. Unlike his contemporaries, he questioned the idea of inevitable progress. He offered a pessimistic diagnosis of his society and proposed a new civil state founded on a social contract based on the general will. The central theme of his work is that the purpose of any legal system is to safeguard
Read MoreThomistic Philosophy: Exploring Natural Law and the Existence of God
Thomistic Philosophy: Natural Law and God’s Existence
Natural Precepts and Human Inclinations
Natural precepts are based on the order of natural inclinations. Man is a composite of soul and body. A key human function is the intellectual or rational, which inclines man to know the truth, especially the divine, and live differently. Society rests on two inclinations and practices.
Response to Objections
- Argument: Two precepts of natural law derived from one. The natural law is one.
- Argument: Various
Locke & Hume’s Ideas, Descartes’s Substance & God
Locke: Definition and Types of Ideas
When Locke speaks of “Idea”, he understands “everything we know or perceive.”
Simple Ideas
These are ideas that cannot be broken down into others, necessarily imposing themselves on the mind, to which it remains passive.
a) Ideas of Sensation
These come from external experience: impressions produced on our senses by external objects in the outside world. Through them, we capture the qualities of bodies, which may be of two types:
- Primary Qualities: These are objective