Skepticism and Certainty in Descartes’ Meditation on First Philosophy
In his Meditations on First Philosophy, Descartes uses a particular method of reasoning to formulate his two arguments for the existence of God. This method uses skepticism to sort through the inconsistencies of previous thoughts and ideas in order to arrive at one absolute principle. Once the absolute principle is found, then the argument can be built upon this foundation. This paper will show how the relationship between skepticism and certainty is used to arrive at Descartes’ two arguments for the existence of God.
To begin, I will explain the method Descartes uses to arrive at his first argument for the existence of God. The first step in Descartes’ meditation is to set aside the senses. He says, “ . . . I have noticed that the senses are sometimes deceptive; and it is a mark of prudence never to place our complete trust in those who have deceived us even once” (28). Descartes, whose background is in geometry, believes in one hundred percent certainty; therefore, he is reluctant to use the senses to affirm complete certainty when the senses appear to be false at times. Descartes wants to arrive at one fundamental certainty, so he pretends an evil deceiver is controlling his perception (which he refers to as “hyperbolic doubt”). With this said, the only thing he can truly be certain of is that he thinks. He is no longer certain that the images he sees or the sounds he hears are true, only the fact that he thinks. From this notion that he is a “thinking thing,” Descartes concludes that he exists. Descartes explains, “Thought exists; it alone cannot be separated from me. I am; I exist-this is certain . . . For as long as I am thinking; for perhaps it could also come to pass that if I were to cease all thinking I would then utterly cease to exist . . . I am therefore precisely nothing but a thinking thing . . .” (31). So, Descartes has stripped his existence down to his mere ability to think. His body is no longer connected to his mind. Descartes has arrived at one absolute principle and is skeptical of the senses, which sometimes deceive him.
Now that he has used skepticism to shake away all uncertainties,
Descartes can begin to formulate an argument for God based on the fact that he thinks. His first argument begins by asserting that if one can conceive of something greater than his or herself (i.e., something extraordinarily better, or of significant perfection), then this idea must have come from something or someone greater than his or herself, because an imperfect creature (such as a human) cannot conceive (create) things greater than the itself. Descartes says, “ . . . what is more perfect cannot come into being from what is less perfect” (36). Thus, he asserts that he has a concept of God that could only have existed if God, himself, existed. For an infinite concept, such as God, could not have been created by a finite subject, such as a thinking thing. This is Descartes’ first argument for the existence of God based on a method of reasoning involving skepticism and certainty.
Descartes’ second argument, again, stems from the basic fact that he is essentially a thinking thing and, therefore, does not utilize the senses while forming his argument. In this argument, Descartes asserts that he has a concept of God, which is of a “supremely perfect being” (46). He then argues that it is only possible for one to think that god exists, for existence is a part of perfection, and God is perfect. Descartes says, “But from the fact that I cannot think of God except as existing, it follows that existence is inseparable from God, and that for this reason he really exists” (46). Again, Descartes is relying entirely on his ability to reason and has disregarded the senses in order to come to a conclusion about the existence of God for his second argument.
Although Descartes spends the majority of his meditations utilizing “hyperbolic doubt” to find one absolute piece of knowledge, the end of his meditations explains how this hyperbolic doubt is no longer useful, since he has proven the existence of God. He says that since he now knows god exists, and that God creates things to the best of his ability (as this would pertain to the definition of God), the senses are then a construct of God; therefore, one should not be skeptical of them any longer (54). He states that although individual senses may deceive a person, God created many different senses to be used together to decipher the world, and are arranged in the best order God could arrive at (54). Since God arranges the senses in the best order, one can return to trusting the senses.
Descartes is able to formulate two arguments for the existence of God, which rely on the use of skepticism to sort through false ideas and arrive at a single truth. Although skepticism and certainty seem like an unlikely pair to come to a conclusion on the existence of God, Descartes proves to give a valid argument for the existence of God through this method.
Works Cited
Ariew, Roger and Eric Watkins. "Modern Philosophy: An Anthology of Primary Sources." Hackett Publishing: Indianapolis, 1998.
To begin, I will explain the method Descartes uses to arrive at his first argument for the existence of God. The first step in Descartes’ meditation is to set aside the senses. He says, “ . . . I have noticed that the senses are sometimes deceptive; and it is a mark of prudence never to place our complete trust in those who have deceived us even once” (28). Descartes, whose background is in geometry, believes in one hundred percent certainty; therefore, he is reluctant to use the senses to affirm complete certainty when the senses appear to be false at times. Descartes wants to arrive at one fundamental certainty, so he pretends an evil deceiver is controlling his perception (which he refers to as “hyperbolic doubt”). With this said, the only thing he can truly be certain of is that he thinks. He is no longer certain that the images he sees or the sounds he hears are true, only the fact that he thinks. From this notion that he is a “thinking thing,” Descartes concludes that he exists. Descartes explains, “Thought exists; it alone cannot be separated from me. I am; I exist-this is certain . . . For as long as I am thinking; for perhaps it could also come to pass that if I were to cease all thinking I would then utterly cease to exist . . . I am therefore precisely nothing but a thinking thing . . .” (31). So, Descartes has stripped his existence down to his mere ability to think. His body is no longer connected to his mind. Descartes has arrived at one absolute principle and is skeptical of the senses, which sometimes deceive him.
Now that he has used skepticism to shake away all uncertainties,
Descartes can begin to formulate an argument for God based on the fact that he thinks. His first argument begins by asserting that if one can conceive of something greater than his or herself (i.e., something extraordinarily better, or of significant perfection), then this idea must have come from something or someone greater than his or herself, because an imperfect creature (such as a human) cannot conceive (create) things greater than the itself. Descartes says, “ . . . what is more perfect cannot come into being from what is less perfect” (36). Thus, he asserts that he has a concept of God that could only have existed if God, himself, existed. For an infinite concept, such as God, could not have been created by a finite subject, such as a thinking thing. This is Descartes’ first argument for the existence of God based on a method of reasoning involving skepticism and certainty.
Descartes’ second argument, again, stems from the basic fact that he is essentially a thinking thing and, therefore, does not utilize the senses while forming his argument. In this argument, Descartes asserts that he has a concept of God, which is of a “supremely perfect being” (46). He then argues that it is only possible for one to think that god exists, for existence is a part of perfection, and God is perfect. Descartes says, “But from the fact that I cannot think of God except as existing, it follows that existence is inseparable from God, and that for this reason he really exists” (46). Again, Descartes is relying entirely on his ability to reason and has disregarded the senses in order to come to a conclusion about the existence of God for his second argument.
Although Descartes spends the majority of his meditations utilizing “hyperbolic doubt” to find one absolute piece of knowledge, the end of his meditations explains how this hyperbolic doubt is no longer useful, since he has proven the existence of God. He says that since he now knows god exists, and that God creates things to the best of his ability (as this would pertain to the definition of God), the senses are then a construct of God; therefore, one should not be skeptical of them any longer (54). He states that although individual senses may deceive a person, God created many different senses to be used together to decipher the world, and are arranged in the best order God could arrive at (54). Since God arranges the senses in the best order, one can return to trusting the senses.
Descartes is able to formulate two arguments for the existence of God, which rely on the use of skepticism to sort through false ideas and arrive at a single truth. Although skepticism and certainty seem like an unlikely pair to come to a conclusion on the existence of God, Descartes proves to give a valid argument for the existence of God through this method.
Works Cited
Ariew, Roger and Eric Watkins. "Modern Philosophy: An Anthology of Primary Sources." Hackett Publishing: Indianapolis, 1998.
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