PHILOSOPHY - What is skepticism Describe Descartes' attempt to build a Essay

PHILOSOPHY - What is skepticism Describe Descartes' attempt to build a secure foundation for knowledge using his method of d - Essay Example Through this, Descartes hopes to find his foundational belief from which a reliable, clear and distinct philosophy can be deduced. But how will Descartes arrive at such a foundational principle? Descartes will doubt all his beliefs in order to arrive at the one thing which cannot be doubted further; this is Descartes attempt to build a secure foundation for knowledge. However, â€Å"is there anything at all that he can know to be true, that can survive the process of doubt?† (Williams 2005, 57) Descartes’ skepticism is termed methodological skepticism; this is defined as â€Å"the use of doubt methodically in order to arrive at true knowledge† (Lavine 1984, 95). In doing so, he first doubts his beliefs on sense perception, which he claims are by nature deceptive. Second, he doubts his beliefs on material objects and the physical world, which are based on sense perception. Third, he doubts his beliefs on natural sciences, which uses objects that are based on sense perception. Fourth, he doubts mathematics. In doing so, he invents an evil demon or genius that conditions his mind and deceives him to fall into error (Greetham 2006, 86). However, Descartes realizes that in order to be deceived, he must exist; in order to doubt, there must be someone doing the doubting. Thus, Descartes arrives at his self-evident principle, which can be stated in Latin as â€Å"Cogito, ergo sum† or â€Å"I think therefore I am† (Copleston 1958, 91). â€Å"This proposition: I am, I exist, is necessarily true each time that I pronounce it, or that I mentally conceive it† (Descartes 2007, 430). So Descartes is now certain of one thing, that is, his existence as a conscious subject; that whenever he is thinking, he is assured of his own existence – but what about the external world? Descartes feared that he may fall into solipsism, the view that â€Å"my mind with its thoughts is the only thing that exists, the only reality: and that othe r persons and the physical world are only ideas within my mind† (Lavine 1984, 100). So in order for Descartes to escape the solitude of solipsism, he has to be able to prove the existence of something other than his own mind. At this point, he sought to prove the existence of God, and bases his proof on his theory of ideas and causes. An idea, for Descartes, is the effect of causes. Herein, he formulates three basic propositions. As Lavine (1984) explains: â€Å"there must be as much reality in the cause as in its effect, something cannot proceed from nothing, and what is more perfect cannot proceed from the less perfect† (104). Given this aforementioned background, Descartes (1993) begins with the claim that he has a â€Å"clear and distinct idea of God† as a perfect being (177). Since ideas are effects of causes, then something must have caused his having such an idea. And since its cause must have the same magnitude to its effect, and that something perfect ca nnot come from something less perfect, then God exists as the only possible cause for his idea of a perfect being, for something cannot come from nothing. Therefore, God exits. Given that God exists, how can this prove that the external world exists? Descartes reaches all â€Å"these conclusions by the application of a method of systematic doubt† (Kenny 2008, 36). Having established his own existence, as well as the existence of God, Descartes now replaces doubt with certainty. Herein, he comes to know that he gains knowledge of material objects