Discourse on Descartes Skeptical Method

Humans are finite substances so they cannot come up with the ideas of infinite substances unless it were given to them by an infinite substance. Descartes continues that while we advance gradually each day these attributes could never exist within us because we are only potentially perfect whereas God is actually perfect. Furthermore, Descartes argues that only God could be the author of his being because if it were he or his parent’s other finite substances that authored his being then he would not have wants or doubts because he would have bestowed upon himself every perfection imaginable to a finite being. Therefore, God exists because Descartes could not have thought of God because he is a finite substance thus the idea of God must have come from an infinite substance.

Secondly, to come up with the second proof of Gods existence, Descartes thought that the power and action that is needed to preserve something is capable of creating something new. He argued that there must be as much power in the cause just as it is in the effect. According to the philosophical writings of Descartes, upon knowing that he did not have power to preserve his own existence because he was just a thinking thing; Descartes concluded that the power must have come from outside him (Descartes, Cottingham and Murdoch 26) And since he is a thinking thing, he claims that the one who created him must also be a thinking thing, possessing all the ideas and attributes of god. In addition, he observed that his parents could not be responsible for creating and preserving his life. Descartes therefore concludes that the one who created him and gave him ideas of a perfect God must be God, therefore God exists.

After giving his first proof for the existence of God Descartes concludes by mentioning that this proof is not always self-evident. When he is absorbed in the world of sensory illusions it is not quite obvious to him that God’s existence can be derived from the idea of God. So to further cement God’s existence Descartes begins his second proof by posing the question of whether he could exist (a thinking thing that possesses the idea of an infinite and perfect god) if God itself did not exist.

Likewise, God cannot be conceived without existence, so it does follow that God and existence are inseparable and God really does exist, not because of thought imposing necessity on things, but because of the necessity in the thing itself. A final issue arises in Descartes’ mind, which questions if it is correct to attribute all perfections to a supremely perfect being, which is quickly disproved, as it is impossible to conceive of a supremely perfect being without attributing all perfections to

Descartes’s Ontological argument begins with the idea of that which is clearly and distinctly known must be true. Following from that, he states that because one clearly and distinctly perceives God as a being with all perfections and because existence is a perfection, God must exist. Further,

You can find Descartes’ proof of the existence of God in the Third Meditation. Although to understand this argument you have to look at his previous meditation where he begins to build his argument with the notion that in order for him to think, he must exist. From this observation, Descartes’ sees that the idea of his existence is very clear and distinct in his mind. Based upon this clarity and the fact that he has just determined his own

Justin Skirry discusses Rene Descartes’ theory for why god exists: “For example, God is not formally an extended thing but solely a thinking thing; however, he is eminently the extended universe in that it exists in him in a higher form, and accordingly he has the ability to cause its existence” (1). This quote means that god is a thinking thing that exists in a higher form and has the ability to cause existence. This quote is important because it shows how Descartes knew that god was a greater being. He knew that he had to exist because he figured out that there was no evil genius controlling the world. He knew that god was a great being that wanted only what is best for the

Descartes’ First Proof of the Existence of God tend to be variety of cosmological argument made in meditation 3, where he is saying that if God did not exist than where did the idea of God come from in our minds(Descartes, p.78).This idea of God has a greater type of reality than those of other idea. This is kind of complex argument .For better understanding of this argument, he classified reality into two classes. The “formal reality” which is the degree of reality that something has and the “objective reality” that applies to ideas (Descartes, p.73&74). The ideas have lowest degree of formal reality because ideas rely upon a thinker for existence, so that should thinker not exist the idea would not have either. God, consider by Descartes

Descartes questions the authenticity of God. He believes that we could not have possibly imagined a perfect God, for we are imperfect and would not be able to conceive such an idea had it not been implanted in us when created. “By the word ‘God’ I understand a substance that is infinite, eternal, unchangeable, independent, supremely intelligent, supremely powerful, which created myself and anything else that may

Existence, therefore, should more properly be thought of as a prerequisite for perfection and not a perfection in and of itself. Descartes disagrees however, and in his reply to Gassendi he argues that existence is necessarily predicated of God because existence is a part of the true essence of any perfect being (Plantinga 49). For Descartes, it is not possible for us to possess the idea of a most perfect being if this being lacks the most important characteristic of existence. If God did not exist then He would not be the most perfect being, but we clearly have the idea of the most perfect being so therefore He must exist. The problem with this notion, however, is that Descartes begs the question by building into premise (2) the concept of a perfect being which has yet to be demonstrated. In order to demonstrate God's existence, Descartes should not assume, or presuppose, that which he is attempting to conclude. But by predicating the existence of God in (2) he has already concluded that which is later restated in the conclusion. In effect, the follower of Descartes's argument is tricked, for if he or she agrees with the foundational premises for the sake of the argument (that existence is predicated of a most perfect being), then there is no choice left but to conclude that God exists.

More explicitly, they believe the reason why Descartes can use the principle, which states that the cause of an idea must be as real as what the idea is about, as a premise is because Descartes is certain of it. From the General Rule, to be certain of something means that one has to have a clear and distinct perception of it. In this case, Descartes must have a clear and distinct perception of the principle, thus allowing him to be certain of it and allowing him to use it as a premise to prove God’s

Descartes a very bright mathematicain and considered to be the founder of modern philsophy didn't always start out as skeptic he believed that there was a point for everything that we may know until he realized that we tend to be decieved by our own senses which makes them an untrustworthy source. However some things that we precieve to be true are so evident that they must be true Descartes eventually arrvies at his concept of self after initial skepticism he begins with "cogito ergo sum" which means "I think therefore I am". However Descartes came to a conclusion that he cannot be wrong of his exsistence because if he is able to doubt therefore he must exist he believes that he can doubt anything and be decitful about the existence of other

To elaborate on the subject, Descartes continues with this idea. If he were created by a less than perfect being, then that would make his creator a finite being. If this is true, and he was created by such, then how did the idea of an infinite being come to be? How is it that his parents know of God, and their parents before that? Descartes believes that mankind is incapable of creating this idea of God, and that the idea of God could only originate from God because he is

Descartes’ journey through the realm of his mind and his internal exploration of all the things he previously thought to be certainly true, brings him to the subject of the existence of God in his Third Meditation. The God that we have come to hear about is known to be an all powerful, all knowing eternal creator. Many people have their doubts about whether that anything could possibly be infinite. Descartes first touches on how the possibility of an infinite entity is possible in order to assist in his argument of the existence of God. Descartes argues that the idea of the possibility of an infinite substance, when we ourselves are finite, wouldn’t exist unless there was something infinite that placed this idea in our minds. Therefore granting

Many analysts criticize Descartes’ final foundation block of knowledge: the existence of God. And I agree with the critics. Not entirely for the concept of the existence of God, but precisely the process in which Descartes concluded with this answer. I do not believe that Descartes posses the ability, or knowledge, to declare the existence of God merely from believing in the concept of God. Just because you have immense faith or belief in one thing does not mean that there is any factual evidence behind it to prove, or disprove its existence.