Descartes

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In the early 17th century a philosopher named Descartes, questioned his existence. His life was dedicated to the founding of a philosophical and mathematical system in which all sciences were logical.

Descartes was born in 1596 in Touraine, France. His education consisted of attendance to a Jesuit school of La Fleche. He studied a liberal arts program that emphasized philosophy, the humanities, science, and math. He then went on to the University of Poitiers where he graduated in 1616 with a law degree. Descartes also served as a volunteer in several different armies to broaden his horizons.

After all of Descartes' study and contemplation of math and science, he decided to find a single principle without doubt on which to build knowledge. His purpose in life became the development of a metaphysical theory that would prove the mathematical truth he had found. His analytical system of doubt led him to doubt everything in the world. He finally reached the conclusion that everything can be doubted except for one thing, his own existence. Even this was called into doubt and found true. Descartes rationalized that by doubting his own existence, he was thinking. If he was thinking, then he must exist. Then he contemplated whether he was awake or asleep. If he was asleep, then he was dreaming that he was thinking and therefore not existing. He decided that one could use sense perception to realize if one was awake of asleep. Finally he concluded, "I think, therefore I am." This became the basis for his entire system of beliefs. Descartes' argument for existence was called "cogito ergo sum." All of Descartes philosophical arguments were made by analytical means. He deduced the conclusion.

Descartes proves the existence of an all-powerful and perfect being. He reasoned that he is not perfect. If he exists and is not perfect then that which is perfect also exists. He says that this thing, which is perfect, is God. He says God exists because of his thoughts of God as an extension of God's existence. After further philosophical reasoning he proved the existence of God. His proof of God has become the classic ontological proof used ever since.

Descartes further proved that God couldn’t deceive anyone concerning anything. This...

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...s" and the "Father of Modern Rationalism." His system of deductive reasoning has been adapted to almost every field of study. His major contributions to the field of math were the Cartesian coordinate system, the exponent, and the development of analytical geometry. His major contributions to the field of philosophy were the "cogito," the system of doubt, and the classical ontological proof of God. Descartes has influenced thought throughout the ages. His works, especially Meditations, Geometry, and his Discourse on Method have become classics. Rene Descartes, although he died at the premature age of 54, was a great mathematician and philosopher well disciplined in all genres. He will always be best remembered for proving his own existence by the statement, "I think, therefore I am."

Works Consulted

Cantor, Norman F. and Peter L. Klein, Eds. Seventeenth-Century Rationalism: Bacon And Descartes. London: Blaisdell, 1969.

Kenny, Anthony. Descartes: A study of his Philosophy. New York: Random House, 1968.

"Rene Descartes." Compton's Encyclopedia. Compton's Learning Company, 1996. On-line. AOL. (May. 2000).

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