Cartesianism, a philosophical and scientific framework, originated with René Descartes and was further elaborated by prominent seventeenth-century intellectuals such as François Poullain de la Barre, Nicolas Malebranche, and Baruch Spinoza. Descartes is frequently credited with pioneering the emphasis on rational inquiry for advancing the natural sciences. He conceptualized philosophy as a comprehensive intellectual system encompassing all forms of knowledge.
Cartesianism is the philosophical and scientific system of René Descartes and its subsequent development by other seventeenth century thinkers, most notably François Poullain de la Barre, Nicolas Malebranche and Baruch Spinoza. Descartes is often regarded as the first thinker to emphasize the use of reason to develop the natural sciences. For him, philosophy was a thinking system that embodied all knowledge.
Descartes's cogito argument was influenced by the works of Aristotle and St. Augustine. Furthermore, parallels exist between Descartes's writings and the 1776 publication by Scottish philosopher George Campbell, titled Philosophy of Rhetoric. In his seminal work, Meditations on First Philosophy, Descartes articulates, "But what then am I? A thing which thinks. What is a thing which thinks? It is a thing which doubts, understands, [conceives], affirms, denies, wills, refuses, which also imagines and feels."
Adherents of Cartesianism posit that the mind is entirely distinct from the physical body. They contend that sensory experience and the perception of reality often lead to falsehoods and illusions, asserting that genuine truths reside solely within a metaphysical mind. This mind, while potentially interacting with a physical body, does not inhabit it, nor does it exist on the same physical plane. The precise mechanism of mind-body interaction presented a persistent challenge for Descartes and his successors, leading to diverse interpretations among Cartesians. Descartes himself stated, "we should conclude from all this, that those things which we conceive clearly and distinctly as being diverse substances, as we regard mind and body to be, are really substances essentially distinct one from the other; and this is the conclusion of the Sixth Meditation." Consequently, Descartes theorized that while the mind and body are separable and distinct, the mind itself remains an indivisible entity, whereas the body can undergo partial separation, as exemplified by the loss of a limb.
Ontology
Descartes posited that all existence comprises three fundamental and distinct substances, each characterized by its unique essence:
- Matter, defined by its three-dimensional extension.
- Mind, characterized by self-conscious thought.
- God, distinguished by necessary existence.
Epistemology
Descartes significantly advanced the epistemological inquiry into the acquisition of reliable knowledge, positioning it as a central concern in philosophical discourse. This contribution is widely regarded as his most enduring legacy in the history of philosophy.
As a rationalist philosophy, Cartesianism asserts that scientific knowledge is obtainable a priori, originating from 'innate ideas' through deductive processes. Consequently, Cartesianism stands in opposition to both Aristotelianism and empiricism, which prioritize sensory experience as the primary source of worldly knowledge.
Descartes maintained that the capacity for deductive reasoning is divinely bestowed and thus inherently trustworthy, premised on the belief that God would not engage in deception.
Geographical dispersal
In the Netherlands, where Descartes resided for an extended period, Cartesianism gained significant traction, particularly among university academics. Conversely, its influence in Germany was negligible; however, adherents in German-speaking border regions, such as the iatromathematician Yvo Gaukes from East Frisia, often opted to publish their works in the Netherlands. In France, the doctrine achieved considerable popularity, extending its influence to Jansenists like Antoine Arnauld, though it faced ecclesiastical opposition there, mirroring the situation in Italy. In Italy, Cartesianism struggled to establish itself, likely due to the placement of Descartes's works on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum in 1663.
For various reasons, including religious considerations, Cartesianism did not achieve widespread acceptance in England. Although Henry More initially found the doctrine appealing, his evolving perspective on Descartes reflected the broader national sentiment: "quick acceptance, serious examination with accumulating ambivalence, final rejection".
Criticism
Jacques Maritain, a Roman Catholic philosopher, contended that Descartes abolished the distinction between angelic and human intellects, effectively portraying humans as angels residing within mechanical bodies, a concept Maritain pejoratively termed "angelism." In contrast, Thomas Aquinas's philosophy posits that angels possess instantaneous knowledge, unmediated by human sensory experience. Descartes, however, dismissed Aquinas's reflections on angelic knowledge as "inept." Maritain's perspective represents merely one among numerous interpretations of Descartes' stance on the mind-body relationship; other analyses, for instance, characterize Descartes as a Scholastic-Aristotelian hylomorphist or even a concealed materialist. Étienne Gilson countered Maritain, asserting that if Descartes was guilty of "angelism," it was not an "original sin," as this concept had precedents in Plato, Saint Augustine, Avicenna, and even biblical texts. John Crowe Ransom dismissed Maritain's charge of angelism as a "phantasy." C. F. Fowler noted that while Descartes explicitly rejected the identification of human minds with angels, his linguistic choices occasionally rendered him susceptible to such an interpretation.
Australian philosopher Colin Murray Turbayne questioned the extent to which Descartes consistently applied his own scientific method while developing his Cartesian system. Turbayne identified at least three instances where Descartes diverged from his stated scientific methodology. Firstly, Descartes arbitrarily attributed the certainty inherent in deductive reasoning for developing theorems and principles to the natural world itself, manifesting as active principles, that catalyze causal event chains. This error led Descartes to mistakenly assign a characteristic of the process of explaining natural phenomena to the natural events themselves. Secondly, Descartes contravened a core tenet of his methodology by arbitrarily dividing the natural world into "causal laws" and "effects" without first presenting direct observational evidence for the existence of such causal agents. Turbayne's third identified error concerns Descartes' a priori assumption that every application of his scientific method necessitates mathematical calculation to deduce valid conclusions. This premise incorrectly presumes that deductive reasoning is intrinsically dependent on mathematical computation for generating conclusions. Turbayne argued that this constitutes an unduly restrictive definition of the scientific method, leading to unnecessary ambiguity.
Notable Cartesians
Cartesian coordinate system
- Cartesian coordinate system
- Mind–body dualism
- Meditations on First Philosophy
- Mentalism (psychology)
- Simulism
- Rationalism
References
Bibliography
- Francisque Bouillier, History of Cartesian Philosophy (2 volumes) Paris: Durand 1854 (reprint: BiblioBazaar 2010).
- Caird, Edward (1911). "Cartesianism" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 414–426.Garrod, Raphaële; Marr, Alexander, eds. (2020). Descartes and the "Ingenium": The Embodied Soul in Cartesianism. Brill's Studies in Intellectual History. Vol. 323. Leiden: Brill Publishers. ISBN 978-90-04-43761-6. ISSN 0920-8607.Source: TORIma Academy Archive