Essay Example on Descartes a man of intelligence and many Talents

Descartes pg 6 After Descartes would finish rejecting the beliefs and matters that he thought could not be salvaged from doubt and starts to fill his structure from with what he believes true knowledge Through his mental journey and evaluation of his self being Descartes reveals that there is a likelihood that he is dreaming and that his body is not his own and his mind is only telling him that that's what his body is supposed to look like Through this illustration of Descartes's mind it brings up the stance that some people would have difficulty in differentiating between their dreams and reality While discussing about what complications people would have about their dreams Descartes says often has it happened to me that in the night I dreamt that I found myself in this particular place that I was dressed and seated near the fire whilst in reality I was lying undressed in bed At this moment it does indeed seem to me that it is with eyes awake that I am looking at this paper that this head which I move is not asleep that it is deliberately and of set purpose that I extend my hand and perceive it what happens in sleep does not appear so clear nor so distinct as does all this Descartes pg 7 While continuing to doubt his beliefs to find a greater knowledge Descartes eventually doubting God himself 

He introduces the point that God might not be the perfectionist that people believe he is and suspects him to in fact be powerful deceiver I shall then suppose not that God who is supremely good and the fountain of truth but some evil genius not less powerful than deceitful has employed his whole energies in deceiving me Descartes pg 8 While still contemplating whether God is on the side of good or bad Descartes brings forth the idea that God is a mischievous demon whose real intention is to deceive him and his beliefs After all the dispute is said and done Descartes judgement comes to a stop and falls back into his former opinions that he had before explaining to never accept anything common and that the only thing he is certain of his own being From the First meditation we move on to the second mediation which consist of the Cogito Argument Within this argument Descartes says the famous I think Therefore I am line which is taken from his argument when he was trying to rid the doubt from his existence In the Cogito argument Descartes implies that since he is doubting his existence he must exist in the first place While Discussing with himself the doubts that he had in meditation 1 Descartes says But I was persuaded that there was nothing in all the world that there was no heaven no earth that there were no minds nor any bodies was I not then likewise persuaded that I did not exist Not at all of a surety I myself did exist since I persuaded myself of something or merely because I thought of something Descartes pg 9 During his Cogito argument He comes up with the doubt again that there is a god that is tricking him into not believing in his own existence But he then decides that his argument of immune to any type of critique similar to that Within the third meditation we get a glimpse of what Descartes thinks about God and his existence The readers are shown that Descartes is still unsure of what is reality but he still believes that God does indeed exist since he is a being who thinks and creates In order for Descartes to truly believe God exist he deems that that the judgement that he had from the first two meditations were wrong and in order to not be deceived he wants to look into what type of nature god has be it good or bad