René Descartes Does Not Reject Sense Perception Essay -- Philosophy Re

Ren Descartes Does Not Reject Sense Perception Some sport suggested that Ren Descartes argues that esthesis perception relies on the sagacity rather than on the body. Descartes asserts that we earth-closet know our mind more readily than we can know our body. In support of this idea he gives the example of a piece of go up which is observed in its solid form and its liquid form. After pointing discover the difficulties of relying on the senses of the physical body to understand the nature of the wax he makes this claim Perception ... is neither a seeing, nor a touching, nor an imagining. ... Rather it is an inspection on the go of the mind alone (Section 31). 1 This quote is perhaps the most lease statement of the authors thesis on this subject. I contend that, based upon the arguments presented in the Second Meditation, Descartes shows that we can use our senses to help us understand the true nature of things, but the senses alone are inadequate to determine loyalty (sinc e they are often deceived), and that all that may be known with inference (truth) are those things we know by our judgment, thinking, and understanding of them in our minds. Descartes argument does non necessarily reject any role of the senses in the process of understanding. locomote of the ArgumentDescartes began his argument in the First Meditation by questioning or calling into doubt everything that he knew. After examining all the things he thought he knew about himself and the world he concluded (the dilate of that argument are beyond the scope of this essay) that the only thing he knew with absolute certainty is that I am, I exist (Section 25). Having established the occurrence that he has a real existence of some kind he then said But I do not soon enough understand... ...y some shape, of being enclosed in a place, and of filling up a space in such a way as to exclude any other body from it ... followed by other features not related to extension. (Section 26) 5 Percep tio a related word perceptione in I11 is translated as knowledge, or perception. In II5 vel odoratu percipi is translated as the sense of smell. In II7 percipiat is translated perceive or know. In II11 perceptiones is translated perceptions, notions, or ideas. In II12 sol mente percipere is rendered it is the mind alone which perceives it (Veitch), it is my mind alone which perceives it (Haldane), I perceive it through the mind alone (Cress). In II14 perfectius evidentiusque percipiebam is translated evident and perfect instauration (Haldane), clearer and more perfect perception (Veitch), and perceived more perfectly and manifestly (Cress).