Rene Descartes
Rene Descartes
René Descarteswas a French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist. Dubbed the father of modern western philosophy, much of subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day. He spent about 20 years of his life in the Dutch Republic...
ProfessionPhilosopher
Date of Birth31 March 1596
CityIndre-et-Loire, France
confused thinking sensations
Sensations are nothing but confused modes of thinking.
grace natural divine
Neither divine grace nor natural knowledge ever diminishes freedom.
dream perception right-now
It is possible that I am dreaming right now and that all of my perceptions are false.
differences goal mind
There is a difference between happiness, the supreme good, and the final end or goal toward which our actions ought to tend. For happiness is not the supreme good, but presupposes it, being the contentment or satisfaction of the mind which results from possessing it.
space vacuums absolutely-nothing
It is contrary to reasoning to say that there is a vacuum or space in which there is absolutely nothing.
dream vivid latter
For how do we know that the thoughts which occur in dreaming are false rather than those others which we experience when awake, since the former are often not less vivid and distinct than the latter?
real roots ontology
Neither the true nor the false roots are always real; sometimes they are imaginary; that is, while we can always imagine as many roots for each equation as I have assigned, yet there is not always a definite quantity corresponding to each root we have imagined.
truth should-have difficult-questions
In the matter of a difficult question it is more likely that the truth should have been discovered by the few than by the many.
body awareness certain
...it is certain that I am really distinct from my body, and can exist without it.
wise believe past
Even the mind depends so much on temperament and the disposition of one's bodily organs that, if it is possible to find a way to make people generally more wise and more skilful than they have been in the past, I believe that we should look for it in medicine. It is true that medicine as it is currently practiced contains little of much use.
gratitude pride hatred
And as it is the most generous souls who have most gratitude, it is those who have most pride, and who are most base and infirm, who most allow themselves to be carried away by anger and hatred.
philosophical
Omnia apud me mathematica fiunt.
There is nothing so far removed from us to be beyond our reach, or so far hidden that we cannot discover it.
dream perfect body
Hence reason also demands that, since our thoughts cannot all be true because we are not wholly perfect, what truth they do possess must inevitably be found in the thoughts we have when awake, rather than in our dreams.