Descartes Ontological Argument Flashcards
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Who was said to have been the father of modern philosophy?
Rene Descartes.
What was Rene Descartes?
A French mathematician, 1596-1650.
In his book, ‘Meditations’, what does Descartes search for?
He searches for any kind of knowledge that can be known certainly.
What did Descartes’ scepticism lead to?
By applying a technique of radically sceptical doubt, certainty in anything could be destroyed.
What is Descartes’ doubting of science and mathematical knowledge called?
Cartesian doubt.
In what way did Descartes apply his scepticism so that he could achieve fundamental knowledge?
He said that: ‘Because I am thinking, I must exist, at least in some kind of mental sense, or Cognito ergo sum, I think therefore I am.’
Descartes observed that another kind of certain knowledge could be attained through something that is definitionally true. Give an example.
The statement ‘all bachelors are unmarried men’ is true, because by definition a bachelor must be unmarried and must be a male.
Describe Descartes ontological argument:
He believed that perfection implied existence. As soon as God is ultimately perfect in every way, by definition, He must exist to be completely perfect.
How did Descartes expand upon his ontological argument with his ‘Descartes triangle’?
He held that just as it is absurd to think of a perfect being that did not exist, so too is it absurd to think of a triangle without three angles. It is in the nature of a triangle to have three sides just as it is within the nature of God to exist. Thus, to deny God would be to say: ‘the existing such and such does not exist.’
How did Gassendi respond to Descartes?
Gassendi argued that it is only relevant to discuss the perfection of something IF it exists. Descartes responded that existence is a necessary part of the essence of God.
What was Kant’s two-stage objection to Descartes?
- Existence is not a real predicate
- God cannot be the exception to the rule
What did Kant mean by the fact that ‘existence is not a real predicate’?
Existence, says Kant, is not a quality in the same way that ‘redness’ and ‘large’ are. Whenever existence is added as a predicate, it actually makes no difference to the subject. If I have 200 existing pounds, versus 200 imaginary pounds, the idea of ‘pound’ remains the same whether it exists or not.
What did Kant mean by the fact that ‘God cannot be an exception to the rule’?
He concluded that the ontological argument was only providing a definition for God to see whether the world might have such a being who could fill the criterion. The a priori is a synthetic process, and does not tell us anything about reality at all. As an analytical argument, it is ultimately circular.
