Meditation I Flashcards
Explain the method of doubt.
The Method of Doubt is a systematic philosophical approach employed by René Descartes, in which he subjects all of his beliefs to skeptical scrutiny and temporarily suspends judgment on any proposition that could be doubted. Descartes used this method as a way to establish a foundation of certain knowledge by systematically doubting everything that could potentially be called into question.
The primary objective of the Method of Doubt was to cast doubt on beliefs that were based on uncertain or unreliable foundations, such as sensory experience, in order to arrive at indubitable truths that could serve as a secure foundation for knowledge.
What does descartes hope to achieve using this method of doubt?
Certainty: Descartes aimed to establish a foundation of certain knowledge that could withstand doubt and skepticism. By subjecting all his beliefs to doubt, he sought to identify indubitable truths that could serve as a secure basis for knowledge. Descartes was searching for truths that were beyond any possible doubt, providing him with a firm and unshakable foundation.
Self-Knowledge: Descartes sought to gain insight into the nature of the self and the certainty of one’s existence. Through the Method of Doubt, Descartes arrived at the famous conclusion “Cogito, ergo sum” or “I think, therefore I am.” By establishing the certainty of his own existence as a thinking being, Descartes believed he had gained fundamental self-knowledge.
Skepticism: Descartes aimed to address skepticism and overcome doubts that could be raised about the reliability of knowledge. By subjecting all his beliefs to doubt, including those based on sensory perceptions, Descartes sought to identify beliefs that could be known with certainty and build his system of knowledge upon them. He aimed to provide a response to skeptical challenges by establishing a secure foundation for knowledge.
Rationalism: Descartes intended to promote a rationalistic approach to knowledge. By employing the Method of Doubt, he emphasized the importance of reason and logical analysis in establishing knowledge. Descartes believed that reason, rather than sensory experience alone, could provide a foundation for certain and reliable knowledge.
How does Descartes doubt the reliability of the senses and the understanding?
Doubting of the senses:
(a) The senses occasionally deceive us (e.g. what is small or far away, or optical illusions) and having occasionally caught the senses deceiving me, it is prudent never to trust completely those who have cheated us even once.
(b) Moreover, madmen sometimes believe that they are places where they are not really, or people they really are not. A lunatic doesn’t know that he is a lunatic, his senses simply confirm as real what we believe is not real.
(c) Finally, people who dream sometime have very vivid dreams and are unable to tell whether they are awake or asleep, indeed they mistakenly believe they are wake when they are actually asleep and dreaming. This indicates that the senses are unable to distinguish sleep-states from waking-states with absolute certainty. Hence, the senses are untrustworthy.
Doubting of the understanding:
a) There is the idea of a God who is omnipotent. How do I know that this God has not brought it about that I am deceived even about those things that I believe are known perfectly well? God may either make it such that truths known by the use of the understanding are not necessarily true, or God may make it such that what is supposedly known through the understanding is not really known due to a faulty understanding. In either case, statements cannot be known to be true with certainty simply by the activity of the understanding.
(b) Descartes replaces God with the hypothesis of the Evil Demon (genius), who is both clever and powerful and who is intent on deceiving me.
Explain fully the Correspondence theory of truth and the Representational theory of perception, as well as the problems for this theory of truth that are generated by this theory of perception?
The Correspondence Theory of Truth holds that truth is a correspondence or agreement between propositions and the way the world is. According to this theory, a statement or belief is true if it accurately represents or corresponds to the facts or states of affairs in reality. In other words, truth is a matter of accurately describing or capturing the objective world.
The Representational Theory of Perception, also known as Direct Realism or Naïve Realism, posits that perception is a direct and unmediated awareness of the external world. According to this theory, our sensory experiences provide us with direct access to the objects and properties in the world, and our perceptions represent or mirror the external reality as it is.
Illusions and Errors: The Representational Theory of Perception highlights the occurrence of perceptual illusions and errors. Illusions, such as the famous Müller-Lyer illusion, demonstrate that our perceptual experiences can misrepresent or distort the objective reality. This poses a challenge for the Correspondence Theory of Truth because it implies that our perceptions, which form the basis of our propositions, can be deceptive or inaccurate.
Subjectivity and Variability: Perception can be influenced by subjective factors, such as personal biases, cultural conditioning, and individual differences. Different individuals may perceive the same object or event differently due to variations in their sensory apparatus or cognitive processes. This subjectivity raises questions about the objectivity of perception and challenges the idea that perceptions directly mirror reality. Consequently, the Correspondence Theory of Truth faces difficulties in determining objective truth when perceptions can vary among individuals.
Hallucinations: The Representational Theory of Perception also raises the issue of hallucinations. Hallucinations are experiences where individuals perceive things that do not exist in the external world. Since hallucinations do not correspond to the external reality, the Correspondence Theory of Truth encounters challenges in determining the truth value of propositions based on hallucinatory experiences.
