Rene Descartes: A Deep Dive into His Life, Philosophy, and Impact
René Descartes was born in March 1596 in La Haye.
The seventeenth century is the century of the crisis of European consciousness, the factors determining this crisis, are the fragmentation of Christianity in various denominations, continual wars, periodic famine and the growing antagonisms between nobles and burghers, nobles and peasants.
The centralized monarchical absolutism in politics is presented as the guarantee of order and uniformity compared to fragmentation and particularism.
This century is characterized by great excitement in science, particularly physics, astronomy and medicine. At the University of the Sorbonne still obtain the Aristotelians and theologians of the Counter-zealous in everything that could contradict the traditional doctrine.
For all knowledge
Aristotelianism certainly part of sensitive data, but the understanding is capable of abstracting the essence of them could be taken as a universal principle for new truths.
The heliocentric Galileo tried to impose their findings brings not only a distrust of what we perceive through the senses, but an inevitable review of what is known about it and wonder what is really there.
The heliocentric places man in a mechanical universe in which there are no angels who move areas or divine first mover.
At age 45 Descartes wrote the Meditations, later accompanied Objections and responses to them, the result of an intense exchange among scientists and philosophers, in which he gives a full picture of the struggle between the new knowledge and the authority of knowledge inherited.
He also wrote Rules for the Direction of the spirit (not just), Treaty of the world (not published) and writes the Discourse on Method.
From the Meditations, performs a wide epistolary relationship with moral and philosophical issues. Published in his Principles of Philosophy
Utrecht, with the animosity of the town, which forbids his writings up to Stockholm as a professor of philosophy invited by Queen Christina of Sweden. And there dies aged 54.
Galileo and Descartes
The thought or, if preferred, the mental attitude of Galileo differs significantly from that of Descartes. It is purely mathematical, is applied mathematics. Galileo makes no assumptions about the possible modes of accelerated motion: you are looking for real mode, the mode that uses nature.
Galileo part, like Descartes, a causal mechanism in order to translate then to a purely geometrical or even replacing it with that relationship. Galileo part of the preconceived idea, no doubt, but that is the basis of his philosophy of nature that the laws of nature are mathematical laws. It embodies the mathematical real. So there is in Galileo separation between experience and theory, the theory, the formula does not apply to external phenomena, not “save” these phenomena, expresses its essence. Nature is not only responds to questions in mathematical language, because nature is the realm of action and order. And if experience guide “by the hand,” the reasoning is because, well done on the experience, or rather in the question posed, nature reveals its deep essence that, moreover, only the intellect is capable of capturing ( …) Galileo succeeded where Descartes failed. He learned to understand and maintain and the paradoxical thought the notion of movement, making it the basis of their reasoning. Descartes was unable to, at least initially. Can we blame that? Is there not an indication that resistance Cartesian something important and profound? We believe so: the classical notion of movement (the same as Descartes later collected, allowing to formulate the principle of inertia and getting revenge on Galileo) is not as clear and distinct as has been said, as he said. A change that is a state … Same is the Other … Only by “force” it is possible to match these concepts, as they once did Plato’s demiurge.
Evidence and obviously (same): uptake of truth through a “simple” inspection of the mind. The simple inspection of the mind so that eqivale soul intuición.De knowledge based on the evidence has to be simple and straightforward.
Precipitation: say recklessly throw or run a cosa.Las causes of the precipitation can be diverse: nuesttras reliance on skills, lack of effort, hurry to get the results …
Prevention: concept that is one thing. It consists in maintaining the sprejuicios adquiridos.Descarte a cause of prevention came from the acceptance of Scholastic Aristotelianism.
Clara: I understand that according to Descartes is clear that knowledge which is present and manifest to an attentive mind as we say we see clearly when standing before us obejetos act with enough strength and our eyes are willing to look.
Different: according to Descartes that knowledge is different