Essay on Descartes Meditations - 1153 Words

Descartes Meditations The way Descartes chose to write this piece literature captivated me. Descartes was a very intelligent man who wanted to make sense of the world he lived in. The format he used was unusual. It seems to me that he may have used this format, which is a replication of the book of Genesis in the Bible, to have a deeper and more profound impact on the reader. There are many similarities between Descartes Meditations and the first book of the Bible, Genesis. For example, Descartes Meditations was written one day at a time, just as God had created the world one day at a time. Furthermore, the order Descartes daily writings took resembled the same order the Bible had for the creation of the world.†¦show more content†¦The issue of our physical bodies can be argued in day seven of Gods creation, when He created man in His own image. Meditation Two in Meditations discusses the nature of the human mind. According to the Bible, on the second day of creation, God made the firmamen t, and divided the waters from the waters. God called the firmament Heaven. (Bible Gen. 1:6) Descartes demonstrates his belief that the mind is free. This meditation is my favorite. In the beginning of it, Descartes seems so confused and lost. He questions every little thing around him and within himself. I recall a time in my own life when I felt like that. It was scary when I read this, for it brought back some very terrible memories of my time going through menopause! I, too, had questioned some of the exact same things he was questioning. My doctor informed me that I had a chemical imbalance in my brain due to the lack of estrogen my body was used to. Given my own personal experience, I see Descartes meditation in two ways. Perhaps Descartes also had some mental disorders, or else my doctor was wrong and I had reason to feel the way I felt. Perhaps the lack of estrogen in my system made me see things more clearly. I seriously doubt the latter explanation. However, i n this meditation, Descartes is separating the mind from the brain, just as God had separated the waters and sky, and created Heaven. I think this meditation was, in almost every way, similar to day two in Genesis.Show MoreRelated The Meditations by Rene Descartes1003 Words   |  5 PagesIn Descartes’ Meditations, his goal to prove the existence of things could only be accomplished if he was logical, clear, and correct in his thoughts and writings. The most important issues he noted were the threat of being deceived and the potential of being incorrect in his judgments, both of which would lead him into error. Error exists as a problem that individuals encounter on a regular basis, and it also exists as a focal point in Descartes’ Meditations. Descartes defines error as â€Å"a privationRead More Descartes - Meditations Essay1649 Words   |  7 Pages In the Meditations, Rene Descartes attempts to doubt everything that is possible to doubt. His uncertainty of thin gs that existence ranges from God to himself. Then he goes on to start proving that things do exist by first proving that he exists. After he establishes himself he can go on to establish everything else in the world. Next he goes to prove that the mind is separate then the body. In order to do this he must first prove he has a mind, and then prove that bodily things exist. I do agreeRead MoreEssay on Descartes Meditations1018 Words   |  5 PagesDescartes Meditations Descartes meditations are created in pursuit of certainty, or true knowledge. He cannot assume that what he has learned is necessarily true, because he is unsure of the accuracy of its initial source. 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In meditation two, he claims that we have better knowledge of our own minds than of the physicalRead MoreAnalysis Of Descartes s The Meditations Essay1580 Words   |  7 PagesThroughout the Meditations, Descartes successfully establishes methodical doubt about math and all sensory information, however, his answer to the doubt cast by the Evil Demon ploy does not fully relieve the dilemma of skepticism that his intense application of doubt has brought forth. Ultimately, Descartes is unable to satisfactorily answer the Evil Demon doubt because his argument does not prove that God’s existence would not prevent the serious errors in judgment and perception caused by t he Evil