Meditations on First Philosophy
Encyclopedia
Meditations on First Philosophy (subtitled In which the existence of God and the immortality of the soul are demonstrated) is a philosophical
treatise written by René Descartes
and first published in 1641 (in Latin). The French
translation (by the Duke of Luynes with the supervision of Descartes) was published in 1647 as Méditations Metaphysiques. The original Latin title is Meditationes de prima philosophia, in qua Dei existentia et animæ immortalitas demonstratur.
The book is made up of six meditations, in which Descartes first discards all belief in things which are not absolutely certain, and then tries to establish what can be known for sure. The meditations were written as if he were meditating for 6 days: each meditation refers to the last one as "yesterday". (In fact, Descartes began work on the Meditations in 1639.)
The Meditations consist of the presentation of Descartes' metaphysical
system in its most detailed level and in the expanding of Descartes' philosophical system, which he first introduced in the fourth part of his Discourse on Method
(1637). Descartes' metaphysical thought is also found in the Principles of Philosophy
(1644), which the author intended to be a philosophy guidebook.
To the most wise and illustrious the Dean and Doctors of the Sacred Faculty of Theology in Paris
Descartes says that he is asking the protection of the Faculty for his work, and to this end he writes the present dedication.
His first consideration is that the existence of God has to be demonstrated philosophically, besides the theological reasons for belief, particularly if we consider to make a demonstration for the non-believers. Moreover, the believers could be accused of making a circular reasoning
, when saying that we must believe in God because of the Scriptures, and in the authority of the Scriptures because have been inspired by God. He further indicates how the very Scriptures say that the mind of man is sufficient to discover God.
Regarding the soul, he reminds how the Fifth Council of the Lateran
, celebrated under Leo X, urges the Christian Philosophers to refute the errors concerning the existence and immortality of the soul.
His aim is to apply a method to demonstrate these two truths, in a so clear and evident manner that result to be evident. This method he has developed for the Sciences.
Preface to the reader
Descartes explains how he made a mention of the two questions, the existence of God, and the soul, in his Discourse on Method
. Following this, he received objections, and two of them he considers are of importance. The first is how he concludes that the essence of the soul is a thing that thinks, excluding all other nature. To this he says that he has a clear perception that he is a thinking thing, and has no other clear perception, and from this he concludes that there is nothing else in the essence of the self.
The second is that from the idea I have of something that is more perfect than myself, there can not be concluded that it exists. In the treatise we will see that in fact from the idea that there is something more perfect than myself, follows that this exists.
It goes to comment that in general, the reasons used by the atheists for denying the existence of God are based in the fact that "we ascribe to God affections that are human, or we attribute so much strength and wisdom to our minds" that we presume to understand that which God can and ought to do. He says that we have to consider God as incomprehensible and infinite, and our minds as limited and finite.
Finally says that the treatise was submitted to some men of learning to know their difficulties and objections, and are answered at the end of it.
He goes on to suggest more powerful reasons to doubt that his beliefs are true. In general, his method is that of forming skeptical hypotheses — methodic doubt. In the first meditation, he considers whether he is mad, dreaming, or deceived by an evil demon.
The general form of these arguments is:
Descartes' goal — as stated at the beginning of the meditation — is to suspend judgment about any of his beliefs which are even slightly doubtful. The skeptical scenarios show that all of the beliefs which he considers in the first meditation, including at the very least all of his beliefs about the physical world, are doubtful. So he decides to suspend judgment. He will henceforth give up all of his beliefs about the physical world. He also decides that he will continually remind himself to avoid habitually falling into accepting beliefs without support, a habit to which he is susceptible.
Descartes argues that this representational theory disconnects the world from the mind, leading to the need for some sort of bridge to span the separation and provide good reasons to believe that the ideas accurately represent the outside world. The first plank he uses in constructing this bridge can be found in the following excerpt:
In other words, one's consciousness implies one's existence. In one of Descartes' replies to objections to the book, he summed this up in the phrase, "I am, I exist", which is often confused with the famous quote, "I think, therefore I am
".
Once he has secured his existence, however, Descartes seeks to find out what "I" is. He rejects the typical method which looks for a definition, e.g. Rational Animal
, because the words used in the definition would then need to be defined. He seeks simple terms that do not need to be defined in this way, but whose meaning can just be "seen." From these self-evident truths, complex terms can be built up.
The first of these self-evident truths is Descartes' proof of existence turned on its head:
To define himself further, Descartes turns to the example of wax
. He determines that wax isn't wax because of its color, texture or shape, as all of these things can change and the substance still be wax. He believes that wax is perceived "by the intellect alone" (Meditation II: On the Nature of the Human Mind, Which Is Better Known Than the Body). Therefore, he distinguishes between ordinary perception and judgment. When one understands the mathematical principles of the substance, such as its expansion under heat, figure and motion, the knowledge of the wax can be clear and distinct.
If a substance such as wax can be known in this fashion, then the same must be of ourselves. The self, then, is not determined by what we sense of ourselves — these hands, this head, these eyes — but by simply the things one thinks. Thus, one "can't grasp anything more easily or plainly than [his] mind."
Descartes concludes that he exists because he is a "thinking thing." If he is the thing that can be deceived and can think and have thoughts, then he must exist.
, Factitious, and Adventitious. Innate ideas are and have always been within us, factitious or invented ideas come from our imagination, and Adventitious ideas come from experiences of the world. He argues that the idea of God is Innate and placed in us by God, and he rejected the possibility that the idea of God is Invented or Adventitious.
Argument 1
Argument 2
Descartes argued that he had a clear and distinct idea of God. In the same way that the cogito was self-evident, so too is the existence of God, as his perfect idea of a perfect being could not have been caused by anything less than a perfect being.
The framework of his arguments center on the Great Chain of Being
, in which God's perfect goodness is relative to His perfect being. On the extreme opposite end of the scale is complete nothingness, which is also the most evil state possible. Thus, humans are an intermediary between these two extremes, being less "real" or "good" than God, but more "real" and "good" than nothingness. Thus, error (as a part of evil) is not a positive reality, it is only the absence of what is correct. In this way, its existence is allowed within the context of a perfectly inerrant God.
Descartes also concedes two points that might allow for the possibility of his ability to make errors. First, he notes that it is very possible that his limited knowledge prevents him from understanding why God chose to create him so he could make mistakes. If he could see the things that God could see, with a complete and infinite scope, perhaps he would judge his ability to err as the best option. He uses this point to attack the Aristotelian
structure of causes
. The final cause described by Aristotle are the "what for" of an object, but Descartes claims that because he is unable to comprehend completely the mind of God, it is impossible to understand completely the "why" through science — only the "how."
Second, he considers the possibility that an apparent error at the individual level could be understood within the totality
of creation as error free.
Lastly, Meditation IV attributes the source of error to a discrepancy between two divine gifts: understanding and free will
. Understanding is given in an incomplete form, while will (by nature) can only be either completely given or not given at all. When he is presented with a certain amount of understanding and then chooses to act outside of that
, he is in error. Thus, the gifts of God (understanding and will) both remain good and only the incorrect usage by him remains as error.
al proof of God's existence.
Descartes separates external objects
into those that are clear and distinct and those that are confused and obscure. The former group consists of the ideas of extension
, duration
and movement
. These geometrical ideas cannot be misconstrued or combined in a way that makes them false. For example, if the idea of a creature with the head of a giraffe
, the body of a lion
and tail
of a beaver
was constructed and the question asked if the creature had a large intestine, the answer would have to be invented. But, no mathematical re-arrangement of a triangle
could allow its three internal angles to sum to anything but 180 degrees. Thus, Descartes perceived that truths may have a nature or essence of themselves, independent of the thinker. (In Descartes' formulation, this is a mathematical truth only pragmatically related to nature; the properties of triangles in Euclidean geometry remain mathematically certain, though it was later discovered that the internal angles in real local triangles sum to more than 180 degrees.)
While thinking about the independence of these ideas of external objects, Descartes realizes that he is just as certain about God as he is about these mathematical ideas. He asserts that this is natural as the ideas of God are the only ideas that imply God's existence. He uses the example of a mountain and a valley. While one cannot picture a mountain
without a valley
, it's possible that these do not exist. However, the fact that one cannot conceive of God without existence inherently rules out the possibility of God's non-existence. Simply put, the argument is framed as follows:
This ontological argument originated in the work of St. Anselm, the medieval Scholastic
philosopher and theologian. While Descartes had already claimed to have confirmed God's existence through previous arguments, this one allows him to put to rest any discontent he might have had with his "distinct and clear" criteria for truth. With a confirmed existence of God, all doubt that what one previously thought was real and not a dream
can be removed. Having made this realization, Descartes asserts that without this sure knowledge in the existence of a supreme and perfect being, assurance of any truth is impossible.
Knowing that the existence of such objects is possible, Descartes then turns to the prevalence of mental images as proof. To do this, he draws a distinction between imagination
and understanding; imagination being a non-linguistic "faculty of knowledge to the body which is immediately present to it [...] without intellection or conception", which therefore exists like a mental photograph
; and understanding (or apprehending) being something that is not necessarily pictured. He uses an example of this to clarify:
Descartes has still not given proof that such external objects exist. At this point, he has only shown that their existence could conveniently explain this mental process. To obtain this proof, he first reviews his premises for the Meditations — that the senses cannot be trusted and what he is taught "by nature" does not have much credence. However, he views these arguments within a new context; after writing Meditation I, he has proved the existence of himself and of a perfect God. Thus, Descartes jumps quickly to proofs of the division between the body and mind and that material things exist:
Proof for the body being distinct from the mind
This has been criticized: just because God can create a mind and body independently of each other (2), it does not necessarily follow that he has (7).
Proof of the reality of external material things
After using these two arguments to dispel solipsism
and skepticism
, Descartes seems to have succeeded in defining reality as being in three parts: God (infinite), minds, and material things (both finite). He closes by addressing natural phenomena that might appear to challenge his philosophy, such as phantom limb
s, dreams, and dropsy.
and a logic
ian before publishing the Meditations. Their objections and his replies (many of which are quite extensive) were included along the first publication of the Meditations. In the Preface to the Meditations, Descartes asks the reader "not to pass judgment on the Meditations until they have been kind enough to read through all these objections and my replies to them.” Thus, this dialogue could be seen as an integral part of Descartes' views expressed in the Meditations.
The seven objectors were, in order (of the sets as they were published):
They make many objections to Descartes’ arguments and method. Some of the objections show that the objector has misunderstood the text. Descartes’ response to these is often dismissive and curt. Other objections are more powerful, and in some cases it is controversial whether Descartes responds
to them successfully (refer to Hobbes' objections).
Some of the most powerful objections include the following:
Objections to proof(s) of God’s existence:
A. We have no (clear) idea of an infinite Being (1st, 2nd, and 5th objections).
B. From the fact that I can think of a perfect being, it doesn’t follow that the perfect being exists (1st, 2nd, and 5th).
C. We could get the idea of God without God’s causing the idea (2nd, 3rd).
D. Nothing can cause itself to exist (4th), so God can’t cause himself to exist unless God is composed of some essence that in and of itself has the property of timelessness.
Objections to the epistemology:
A. How can we be sure that what we think is a clear and distinct perception really is clear and distinct (3rd, 5th)?
B. Circle objection
1: if we aren’t certain that judgments based on clear and distinct ideas are true before we prove God’s existence, then we can’t be certain that we are a thinking thing (2nd). Circle objection 2: if we aren’t certain that clear and distinct ideas are true before we prove God’s existence, then we can’t be certain that God exists, since we use clear and distinct ideas to prove God’s existence (4th).
C. Contrary to what Descartes argues, we are certain that bodies exist/that perception coincides with reality (5th, 6th), but we are not certain that the bodies of our perception are actual bodies in an existent external world.
Objections to philosophy of mind
:
A. Ideas are always imagistic
(3rd), so we have no idea of thinking substance (non-image idea).
B. We can’t conclude that the mind (thinking thing) is not also a corporeal
thing, unless we know that we know everything about the mind. But we don’t know that we know everything about the mind. So we don’t know that the mind isn’t corporeal. (2nd, 4th, 5th, 7th).
Elisabeth of Bohemia
also corresponded with Descartes on the Meditations (from 1643, unpublished, at her insistence). She objected both to his description of the union between mind and body, and that virtue and moral truths seem to need to be grasped by something other than the intellect (despite Descartes's assertion that all truths must be grasped intellectually).
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
treatise written by René Descartes
René Descartes
René Descartes ; was a French philosopher and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day...
and first published in 1641 (in Latin). The French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
translation (by the Duke of Luynes with the supervision of Descartes) was published in 1647 as Méditations Metaphysiques. The original Latin title is Meditationes de prima philosophia, in qua Dei existentia et animæ immortalitas demonstratur.
The book is made up of six meditations, in which Descartes first discards all belief in things which are not absolutely certain, and then tries to establish what can be known for sure. The meditations were written as if he were meditating for 6 days: each meditation refers to the last one as "yesterday". (In fact, Descartes began work on the Meditations in 1639.)
The Meditations consist of the presentation of Descartes' metaphysical
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...
system in its most detailed level and in the expanding of Descartes' philosophical system, which he first introduced in the fourth part of his Discourse on Method
Discourse on Method
The Discourse on the Method is a philosophical and autobiographical treatise published by René Descartes in 1637. Its full name is Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting One's Reason and of Seeking Truth in the Sciences .The Discourse on Method is best known...
(1637). Descartes' metaphysical thought is also found in the Principles of Philosophy
Principles of Philosophy
Principles of Philosophy is a book by René Descartes. Written in Latin, it was published in 1644 and dedicated to Elisabeth of Bohemia, with whom Descartes had a long standing friendship. A French version followed in 1647. It set forth the principles of nature—the Laws of Physics--as Descartes...
(1644), which the author intended to be a philosophy guidebook.
Letter of Dedication and Preface
Letter of dedicationTo the most wise and illustrious the Dean and Doctors of the Sacred Faculty of Theology in Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
Descartes says that he is asking the protection of the Faculty for his work, and to this end he writes the present dedication.
His first consideration is that the existence of God has to be demonstrated philosophically, besides the theological reasons for belief, particularly if we consider to make a demonstration for the non-believers. Moreover, the believers could be accused of making a circular reasoning
Circular reasoning
Circular reasoning, or in other words, paradoxical thinking, is a type of formal logical fallacy in which the proposition to be proved is assumed implicitly or explicitly in one of the premises. For example:"Only an untrustworthy person would run for office...
, when saying that we must believe in God because of the Scriptures, and in the authority of the Scriptures because have been inspired by God. He further indicates how the very Scriptures say that the mind of man is sufficient to discover God.
Regarding the soul, he reminds how the Fifth Council of the Lateran
Fifth Council of the Lateran
The Fifth Council of the Lateran was the last Ecumenical council of the Catholic Church before reformation.When elected pope in 1503, Pope Julius II , promised under oath that he would soon convoke a general council. However, as time passed the promise was not fulfilled...
, celebrated under Leo X, urges the Christian Philosophers to refute the errors concerning the existence and immortality of the soul.
His aim is to apply a method to demonstrate these two truths, in a so clear and evident manner that result to be evident. This method he has developed for the Sciences.
Preface to the reader
Descartes explains how he made a mention of the two questions, the existence of God, and the soul, in his Discourse on Method
Discourse on Method
The Discourse on the Method is a philosophical and autobiographical treatise published by René Descartes in 1637. Its full name is Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting One's Reason and of Seeking Truth in the Sciences .The Discourse on Method is best known...
. Following this, he received objections, and two of them he considers are of importance. The first is how he concludes that the essence of the soul is a thing that thinks, excluding all other nature. To this he says that he has a clear perception that he is a thinking thing, and has no other clear perception, and from this he concludes that there is nothing else in the essence of the self.
The second is that from the idea I have of something that is more perfect than myself, there can not be concluded that it exists. In the treatise we will see that in fact from the idea that there is something more perfect than myself, follows that this exists.
It goes to comment that in general, the reasons used by the atheists for denying the existence of God are based in the fact that "we ascribe to God affections that are human, or we attribute so much strength and wisdom to our minds" that we presume to understand that which God can and ought to do. He says that we have to consider God as incomprehensible and infinite, and our minds as limited and finite.
Finally says that the treatise was submitted to some men of learning to know their difficulties and objections, and are answered at the end of it.
Meditation I: Concerning Those Things That Can Be Called into Doubt
The first way that Descartes tries to undermine his beliefs is by considering the fact that he remembers that his senses have deceived him before. If he has been misled by sensory information in the past (e.g. he judged that the stick in the water was bent, when in fact it was straight), then he may be deceived now, "and it is prudent never to trust completely those who have deceived us even once."He goes on to suggest more powerful reasons to doubt that his beliefs are true. In general, his method is that of forming skeptical hypotheses — methodic doubt. In the first meditation, he considers whether he is mad, dreaming, or deceived by an evil demon.
The general form of these arguments is:
- If I am dreaming/deceived, then my beliefs are unreliable.
Descartes' goal — as stated at the beginning of the meditation — is to suspend judgment about any of his beliefs which are even slightly doubtful. The skeptical scenarios show that all of the beliefs which he considers in the first meditation, including at the very least all of his beliefs about the physical world, are doubtful. So he decides to suspend judgment. He will henceforth give up all of his beliefs about the physical world. He also decides that he will continually remind himself to avoid habitually falling into accepting beliefs without support, a habit to which he is susceptible.
Meditation II: Concerning the Nature of the Human Mind: That It Is Better Known Than the Body
In Meditation II, Descartes lays out a pattern of thought, sometimes called representationalism, in response to the doubts forwarded in Meditation I. He identifies five steps in this theory:- We only have access to the world of our ideas; things in the world are only accessed indirectly.
- These ideas are understood to include all of the contents of the mind, including perceptions, images, memories, conceptConceptThe word concept is used in ordinary language as well as in almost all academic disciplines. Particularly in philosophy, psychology and cognitive sciences the term is much used and much discussed. WordNet defines concept: "conception, construct ". However, the meaning of the term concept is much...
s, beliefs, intentionIntentionIntention is an agent's specific purpose in performing an action or series of actions, the end or goal that is aimed at. Outcomes that are unanticipated or unforeseen are known as unintended consequences....
s, decisions, etc. - Ideas and the things they represent are separate from each other.
- These represented things are many times "external" to the mindMindThe concept of mind is understood in many different ways by many different traditions, ranging from panpsychism and animism to traditional and organized religious views, as well as secular and materialist philosophies. Most agree that minds are constituted by conscious experience and intelligent...
. - It is possible for these ideas to constitute either accurate or false representations.
Descartes argues that this representational theory disconnects the world from the mind, leading to the need for some sort of bridge to span the separation and provide good reasons to believe that the ideas accurately represent the outside world. The first plank he uses in constructing this bridge can be found in the following excerpt:
I have convinced myself that there is nothing in the world — no sky, no earth, no minds, no bodies. Doesn't it follow that I don't exist? No, surely I must exist if it's me who is convinced of something. But there is a deceiver, supremely powerful and cunning whose aim is to see that I am always deceived. But surely I exist, if I am deceived. Let him deceive me all he can, he will never make it the case that I am nothing while I think that I am something. Thus having fully weighed every consideration, I must finally conclude that the statement "I am, I exist" must be true whenever I state it or mentally consider it. (Descartes, Meditation II: On the Nature of the Human Mind, Which Is Better Known Than the Body).
In other words, one's consciousness implies one's existence. In one of Descartes' replies to objections to the book, he summed this up in the phrase, "I am, I exist", which is often confused with the famous quote, "I think, therefore I am
Cogito ergo sum
is a philosophical Latin statement proposed by . The simple meaning of the phrase is that someone wondering whether or not they exist is, in and of itself, proof that something, an "I", exists to do the thinking — However this "I" is not the more or less permanent person we call "I"...
".
Once he has secured his existence, however, Descartes seeks to find out what "I" is. He rejects the typical method which looks for a definition, e.g. Rational Animal
Rational Animal
Rational animal is a classical definition of man. Though it is often attributed to first appearing as a definition in Aristotle's Metaphysics, Aristotle does not define it here...
, because the words used in the definition would then need to be defined. He seeks simple terms that do not need to be defined in this way, but whose meaning can just be "seen." From these self-evident truths, complex terms can be built up.
The first of these self-evident truths is Descartes' proof of existence turned on its head:
But what then am I? A thinking thing. And what is that? Something that doubts, understands, affirms, denies, wills, refuses, and also senses and has mental images. (Descartes, Meditation II: On the Nature of the Human Mind, Which Is Better Known Than the Body).
To define himself further, Descartes turns to the example of wax
Beeswax
Beeswax is a natural wax produced in the bee hive of honey bees of the genus Apis. It is mainly esters of fatty acids and various long chain alcohols...
. He determines that wax isn't wax because of its color, texture or shape, as all of these things can change and the substance still be wax. He believes that wax is perceived "by the intellect alone" (Meditation II: On the Nature of the Human Mind, Which Is Better Known Than the Body). Therefore, he distinguishes between ordinary perception and judgment. When one understands the mathematical principles of the substance, such as its expansion under heat, figure and motion, the knowledge of the wax can be clear and distinct.
If a substance such as wax can be known in this fashion, then the same must be of ourselves. The self, then, is not determined by what we sense of ourselves — these hands, this head, these eyes — but by simply the things one thinks. Thus, one "can't grasp anything more easily or plainly than [his] mind."
Descartes concludes that he exists because he is a "thinking thing." If he is the thing that can be deceived and can think and have thoughts, then he must exist.
Meditation III: Concerning God, That He Exists
Descartes proposed that there are three types of ideas: InnateInnatism
Innatism is a philosophical doctrine that holds that the mind is born with ideas/knowledge, and that therefore the mind is not a 'blank slate' at birth, as early empiricists such as John Locke claimed...
, Factitious, and Adventitious. Innate ideas are and have always been within us, factitious or invented ideas come from our imagination, and Adventitious ideas come from experiences of the world. He argues that the idea of God is Innate and placed in us by God, and he rejected the possibility that the idea of God is Invented or Adventitious.
Argument 1
- Something can not come from nothing.
- The cause of an idea must have at least as much formal reality as the idea has objective reality.
- I have in me an idea of God. This idea has infinite objective reality.
- I cannot be the cause of this idea, since I am not an infinite and perfect being. I don't have enough formal reality. Only an infinite and perfect being could cause such an idea.
- So God — a being with infinite formal reality — must exist (and be the source of my idea of God).
- An absolutely perfect being is a good, benevolent being.
- So God is benevolent...
- So God would not deceive me, and would not permit me to error without giving me a way to correct my errors.
Argument 2
- I exist.
- My existence must have a cause.
- The only possible ultimate causes are
-
- a) myself
- b) my always having existed
- c) my parents
- d) something less perfect than God
- e) God
- 4. Not a. If I had created myself, I would have made myself perfect.
- 5. Not b. This does not solve the problem. If I am a dependent being, I need to be continually sustained by another.
- 6. Not c. This leads to an infinite regressInfinite regressAn infinite regress in a series of propositions arises if the truth of proposition P1 requires the support of proposition P2, the truth of proposition P2 requires the support of proposition P3, .....
. - 7. Not d. The idea of perfection that exists in me cannot have originated from a non-perfect being.
- 8. Therefore, e. God exists.
Descartes argued that he had a clear and distinct idea of God. In the same way that the cogito was self-evident, so too is the existence of God, as his perfect idea of a perfect being could not have been caused by anything less than a perfect being.
Meditation IV: Concerning the True and the False
The conclusions of the previous Meditations that "I" and "God" both exist lead to another problem: If God is perfectly good and the source of all that is, how is there room for error or falsehood? Descartes attempts to answer this question in Meditation IV: On Truth and Falsity.
If I've gotten everything in me from God and He hasn't given me the ability to make errors, it doesn't seem possible for me ever to error. (Descartes, Meditation IV: On Truth and Falsity).
The framework of his arguments center on the Great Chain of Being
Great chain of being
The great chain of being , is a Christian concept detailing a strict, religious hierarchical structure of all matter and life, believed to have been decreed by the Christian God.-Divisions:...
, in which God's perfect goodness is relative to His perfect being. On the extreme opposite end of the scale is complete nothingness, which is also the most evil state possible. Thus, humans are an intermediary between these two extremes, being less "real" or "good" than God, but more "real" and "good" than nothingness. Thus, error (as a part of evil) is not a positive reality, it is only the absence of what is correct. In this way, its existence is allowed within the context of a perfectly inerrant God.
I find that I am "intermediate" between God and nothingness, between the supreme entity and nonentity. Insofar as I am the creation of the supreme entity, there's nothing in me to account for my being deceived or led into error, but, inasmuch as I somehow participate in nothing or nonentity — that is, insofar as I am distinct from the supreme entity itself and lack many things — it's not surprising that I go wrong. I thus understand that, in itself, error is a lack, rather than a real thing dependent on God. Hence, I understand that I can err without God's having given me a special ability to do so. Rather, I fall into error because my God-given ability to judge the truth is not infinite. (Descartes, Meditation IV: On Truth and Falsity).
Descartes also concedes two points that might allow for the possibility of his ability to make errors. First, he notes that it is very possible that his limited knowledge prevents him from understanding why God chose to create him so he could make mistakes. If he could see the things that God could see, with a complete and infinite scope, perhaps he would judge his ability to err as the best option. He uses this point to attack the Aristotelian
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
structure of causes
Four causes
Four Causes refers to a principle in Aristotelian science that is used to understand change. Aristotle described four different types of causes, or ways in which an object could be explained: "we do not have knowledge of a thing until we have grasped its why, that is to say, its cause", He argued...
. The final cause described by Aristotle are the "what for" of an object, but Descartes claims that because he is unable to comprehend completely the mind of God, it is impossible to understand completely the "why" through science — only the "how."
I realize that I shouldn't be surprised at God's doing things that I can't explain. I shouldn't doubt His existence just because I find that I sometimes can't understand why or how He has made something. I know that my nature is weak and limited and that God's is limitless, incomprehensible, and infinite, and, from this, I can infer that He can do innumerable things whose reasons are unknown to me. On this ground alone, I regard the common practice of explaining things in terms of their purposes to be useless in physics: it would be foolhardy of me to think that I can discover God's purposes. (Descartes, Meditation IV: On Truth and Falsity).
Second, he considers the possibility that an apparent error at the individual level could be understood within the totality
Holism
Holism is the idea that all the properties of a given system cannot be determined or explained by its component parts alone...
of creation as error free.
When asking whether God's works are perfect, I ought to look at all of them together, not at one isolation. For something that seems imperfect when viewed alone might seem completely perfect when regarded as having a place in the world. Of course, since calling everything into doubt, I haven't established that anything exists besides me and God. But, when I consider God's immense power, I can't deny that He has made — or, in any case, that He could have made — many other things, and I must therefore view myself as having a place in a universe. (Descartes, Meditation IV: On Truth and Falsity).
Lastly, Meditation IV attributes the source of error to a discrepancy between two divine gifts: understanding and free will
Free will
"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
. Understanding is given in an incomplete form, while will (by nature) can only be either completely given or not given at all. When he is presented with a certain amount of understanding and then chooses to act outside of that
Libertarianism (metaphysics)
Libertarianism is one of the main philosophical positions related to the problems of free will and determinism, which are part of the larger domain of metaphysics. In particular, libertarianism, which is an incompatibilist position, argues that free will is logically incompatible with a...
, he is in error. Thus, the gifts of God (understanding and will) both remain good and only the incorrect usage by him remains as error.
If I suspend judgement when I don't clearly and distinctly grasp what is true, I obviously do right and am not deceived. But, if I either affirm or deny in a case of this sort, I misuse my freedom of choice. If I affirm what is false, I clearly err, and, if I stumble onto the truth, I'm still blameworthy since the light of nature reveals that a perception of the understanding should always precede a decision of the will. In these misuses of freedom of choice lies the deprivation that accounts for error. And this deprivation, I maintain, lies in the working of the will insofar as it comes from me — not in my God-given ability to will, or even in the will's operation insofar as it derives from Him. (Descartes, Meditation IV: On Truth and Falsity).
Meditation V: Concerning the Essence of Material Things, and Again Concerning God, That He Exists
Meditation V: Concerning the Essence of Material Things, and Again Concerning God, That He Exists begins with the stated purpose of expanding the "known items" of God and self to include outside material objects; but Descartes saves that for Meditation VI in lieu of something he deems more fundamental but in the same direction: a discussion concerning the ideas of those external items. Along the way, he advances another logicLogic
In philosophy, Logic is the formal systematic study of the principles of valid inference and correct reasoning. Logic is used in most intellectual activities, but is studied primarily in the disciplines of philosophy, mathematics, semantics, and computer science...
al proof of God's existence.
Before asking whether any such objects exist outside me, I ought to consider the ideas of these objects as they exist in my thoughts and see which are clear and which confused. (Descartes, Meditation V: On the Essence of Material Objects and More on God's Existence).
Descartes separates external objects
Object (philosophy)
An object in philosophy is a technical term often used in contrast to the term subject. Consciousness is a state of cognition that includes the subject, which can never be doubted as only it can be the one who doubts, and some object or objects that may or may not have real existence without...
into those that are clear and distinct and those that are confused and obscure. The former group consists of the ideas of extension
Extension (metaphysics)
In metaphysics, extension is, roughly speaking, the property of "taking up space". René Descartes defines extension as the property of existing in more than one dimension. For Descartes, the primary characteristic of matter is extension, just as the primary characteristic of mind is consciousness...
, duration
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
and movement
Motion (physics)
In physics, motion is a change in position of an object with respect to time. Change in action is the result of an unbalanced force. Motion is typically described in terms of velocity, acceleration, displacement and time . An object's velocity cannot change unless it is acted upon by a force, as...
. These geometrical ideas cannot be misconstrued or combined in a way that makes them false. For example, if the idea of a creature with the head of a giraffe
Giraffe
The giraffe is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all extant land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant...
, the body of a lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
and tail
Tail
The tail is the section at the rear end of an animal's body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, reptiles, and birds...
of a beaver
Beaver
The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
was constructed and the question asked if the creature had a large intestine, the answer would have to be invented. But, no mathematical re-arrangement of a triangle
Triangle
A triangle is one of the basic shapes of geometry: a polygon with three corners or vertices and three sides or edges which are line segments. A triangle with vertices A, B, and C is denoted ....
could allow its three internal angles to sum to anything but 180 degrees. Thus, Descartes perceived that truths may have a nature or essence of themselves, independent of the thinker. (In Descartes' formulation, this is a mathematical truth only pragmatically related to nature; the properties of triangles in Euclidean geometry remain mathematically certain, though it was later discovered that the internal angles in real local triangles sum to more than 180 degrees.)
I find in myself innumerable ideas of things which, though they may not exist outside me, can't be said to be nothing. While I have some control over my thoughts of these things, I do not make the things up: they have their own real and immutable natures. Suppose, for example, that I have a mental image of a triangle. While it may be that no figure of this sort does exist or ever has existed outside my thought, the figure has a fixed nature (essence or form), immutable and eternal, which hasn't been produced by me and isn't dependent of my mind. (Descartes, Meditation V: On the Essence of Material Objects and More on God's Existence).
While thinking about the independence of these ideas of external objects, Descartes realizes that he is just as certain about God as he is about these mathematical ideas. He asserts that this is natural as the ideas of God are the only ideas that imply God's existence. He uses the example of a mountain and a valley. While one cannot picture a mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
without a valley
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
, it's possible that these do not exist. However, the fact that one cannot conceive of God without existence inherently rules out the possibility of God's non-existence. Simply put, the argument is framed as follows:
- God is defined as an infinitely perfect being.
- Perfection includes existence.
- So God exists.
This ontological argument originated in the work of St. Anselm, the medieval Scholastic
Scholasticism
Scholasticism is a method of critical thought which dominated teaching by the academics of medieval universities in Europe from about 1100–1500, and a program of employing that method in articulating and defending orthodoxy in an increasingly pluralistic context...
philosopher and theologian. While Descartes had already claimed to have confirmed God's existence through previous arguments, this one allows him to put to rest any discontent he might have had with his "distinct and clear" criteria for truth. With a confirmed existence of God, all doubt that what one previously thought was real and not a dream
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
can be removed. Having made this realization, Descartes asserts that without this sure knowledge in the existence of a supreme and perfect being, assurance of any truth is impossible.
Meditation VI: Concerning the Existence of Material Things, and the Real Distinction between Mind and Body
In Meditation VI: Concerning the Existence of Material Things, and the Real Distinction between Mind and Body, Descartes addresses the potential existence of material outside of the self and God. First, he asserts that such objects can exist simply because God is able to make them.
Insofar as they are the subject of pure mathematics, I now know at least that they can exist, because I grasp them clearly and distinctly. For God can undoubtedly make whatever I can grasp in this way, and I never judge that something is impossible for Him to make unless there would be a contradiction in my grasping the thing distinctly. (Descartes, Meditation VI: On the Existence of Material Objects from Body).
Knowing that the existence of such objects is possible, Descartes then turns to the prevalence of mental images as proof. To do this, he draws a distinction between imagination
Imagination
Imagination, also called the faculty of imagining, is the ability of forming mental images, sensations and concepts, in a moment when they are not perceived through sight, hearing or other senses...
and understanding; imagination being a non-linguistic "faculty of knowledge to the body which is immediately present to it [...] without intellection or conception", which therefore exists like a mental photograph
Photograph
A photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
; and understanding (or apprehending) being something that is not necessarily pictured. He uses an example of this to clarify:
When I have a mental image of a triangle, for example, I don't just understand that it is a figure bounded by three lines; I also "look at" the lines as though they were present to my mind's eye. And this is what I call having a mental image. When I want to think of a chiliagon, I understand that it is a figure with a thousand sides as well as I understand that a triangle is a figure with three, but I can't imagine its sides or "look" at them as though they were present (...) Thus I observe that a special effort of mind is necessary to the act of imagination, which is not required to conceiving or understanding (ad intelligendum); and this special exertion of mind clearly shows the difference between imagination and pure intellection (imaginatio et intellectio pura). (Descartes, Meditation VI: On the Existence of Material Objects and the Real Distinction of Mind from Body).
Descartes has still not given proof that such external objects exist. At this point, he has only shown that their existence could conveniently explain this mental process. To obtain this proof, he first reviews his premises for the Meditations — that the senses cannot be trusted and what he is taught "by nature" does not have much credence. However, he views these arguments within a new context; after writing Meditation I, he has proved the existence of himself and of a perfect God. Thus, Descartes jumps quickly to proofs of the division between the body and mind and that material things exist:
Proof for the body being distinct from the mind
Dualism (philosophy of mind)
In philosophy of mind, dualism is a set of views about the relationship between mind and matter, which begins with the claim that mental phenomena are, in some respects, non-physical....
- It is possible for God to create anything I can clearly and distinctly perceive.
- If God creates something to be independent of another, they are distinct from each other.
- I clearly and distinctly understand my existence as a thinking thing (which does not require the existence of a body).
- So God can create a thinking thing independently of a body.
- I clearly and distinctly understand my body as an extended thing (which does not require a mind).
- So God can create a body independently of a mind.
- So my mind is a reality distinct from my body.
- So I (a thinking thing) can exist without a body.
This has been criticized: just because God can create a mind and body independently of each other (2), it does not necessarily follow that he has (7).
Proof of the reality of external material things
- I have a "strong inclination" to believe in the reality of external material things due to my senses.
- God must have created me with this nature.
- If independent material things do not exist, God is a deceiver.
- But God is not a deceiver.
- So material things exist and contain the properties essential to them.
After using these two arguments to dispel solipsism
Solipsism
Solipsism is the philosophical idea that only one's own mind is sure to exist. The term comes from Latin solus and ipse . Solipsism as an epistemological position holds that knowledge of anything outside one's own mind is unsure. The external world and other minds cannot be known, and might not...
and skepticism
Skepticism
Skepticism has many definitions, but generally refers to any questioning attitude towards knowledge, facts, or opinions/beliefs stated as facts, or doubt regarding claims that are taken for granted elsewhere...
, Descartes seems to have succeeded in defining reality as being in three parts: God (infinite), minds, and material things (both finite). He closes by addressing natural phenomena that might appear to challenge his philosophy, such as phantom limb
Phantom limb
A phantom limb is the sensation that an amputated or missing limb is still attached to the body and is moving appropriately with other body parts. 2 out of 3 combat veterans report this feeling. Approximately 60 to 80% of individuals with an amputation experience phantom sensations in their...
s, dreams, and dropsy.
Objections and replies
Descartes submitted his manuscript to many philosophers, theologiansTheology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
and a logic
Logic
In philosophy, Logic is the formal systematic study of the principles of valid inference and correct reasoning. Logic is used in most intellectual activities, but is studied primarily in the disciplines of philosophy, mathematics, semantics, and computer science...
ian before publishing the Meditations. Their objections and his replies (many of which are quite extensive) were included along the first publication of the Meditations. In the Preface to the Meditations, Descartes asks the reader "not to pass judgment on the Meditations until they have been kind enough to read through all these objections and my replies to them.” Thus, this dialogue could be seen as an integral part of Descartes' views expressed in the Meditations.
The seven objectors were, in order (of the sets as they were published):
- The DutchDutch peopleThe Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
theologian Johannes Caterus (Johan de Kater) first set of objections. - Various "theologians and philosophers" gathered by Descartes' friend and principal correspondent, FriarFriarA friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
Marin MersenneMarin MersenneMarin Mersenne, Marin Mersennus or le Père Mersenne was a French theologian, philosopher, mathematician and music theorist, often referred to as the "father of acoustics"...
- second set of objections - The EnglishEnglish peopleThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
philosopher Thomas HobbesThomas HobbesThomas Hobbes of Malmesbury , in some older texts Thomas Hobbs of Malmsbury, was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy...
- third set of objections - The theologian and logician Antoine ArnauldAntoine ArnauldAntoine Arnauld — le Grand as contemporaries called him, to distinguish him from his father — was a French Roman Catholic theologian, philosopher, and mathematician...
- fourth set - The philosopher Pierre GassendiPierre GassendiPierre Gassendi was a French philosopher, priest, scientist, astronomer, and mathematician. With a church position in south-east France, he also spent much time in Paris, where he was a leader of a group of free-thinking intellectuals. He was also an active observational scientist, publishing the...
- fifth set (Descartes wrote that all of these could be easily dismissed.) - Another miscellany gathered by Mersenne -sixth set
- The Jesuit Pierre Bourdin -seventh set of objections
They make many objections to Descartes’ arguments and method. Some of the objections show that the objector has misunderstood the text. Descartes’ response to these is often dismissive and curt. Other objections are more powerful, and in some cases it is controversial whether Descartes responds
Rebuttal
In law, rebuttal is a form of evidence that is presented to contradict or nullify other evidence that has been presented by an adverse party. By analogy the same term is used in politics and public affairs to refer to the informal process by which statements, designed to refute or negate specific...
to them successfully (refer to Hobbes' objections).
Some of the most powerful objections include the following:
Objections to proof(s) of God’s existence:
A. We have no (clear) idea of an infinite Being (1st, 2nd, and 5th objections).
B. From the fact that I can think of a perfect being, it doesn’t follow that the perfect being exists (1st, 2nd, and 5th).
C. We could get the idea of God without God’s causing the idea (2nd, 3rd).
D. Nothing can cause itself to exist (4th), so God can’t cause himself to exist unless God is composed of some essence that in and of itself has the property of timelessness.
Objections to the epistemology:
A. How can we be sure that what we think is a clear and distinct perception really is clear and distinct (3rd, 5th)?
B. Circle objection
Cartesian circle
The Cartesian circle is a potential mistake in reasoning attributed to René Descartes.Descartes argues – for example, in the third of his Meditations on First Philosophy – that whatever one clearly and distinctly perceives is true: "I now seem to be able to lay it down as a general rule that...
1: if we aren’t certain that judgments based on clear and distinct ideas are true before we prove God’s existence, then we can’t be certain that we are a thinking thing (2nd). Circle objection 2: if we aren’t certain that clear and distinct ideas are true before we prove God’s existence, then we can’t be certain that God exists, since we use clear and distinct ideas to prove God’s existence (4th).
C. Contrary to what Descartes argues, we are certain that bodies exist/that perception coincides with reality (5th, 6th), but we are not certain that the bodies of our perception are actual bodies in an existent external world.
Objections to philosophy of mind
Philosophy of mind
Philosophy of mind is a branch of philosophy that studies the nature of the mind, mental events, mental functions, mental properties, consciousness and their relationship to the physical body, particularly the brain. The mind-body problem, i.e...
:
A. Ideas are always imagistic
Mental image
A mental image is an experience that, on most occasions, significantly resembles the experience of perceiving some object, event, or scene, but occurs when the relevant object, event, or scene is not actually present to the senses...
(3rd), so we have no idea of thinking substance (non-image idea).
B. We can’t conclude that the mind (thinking thing) is not also a corporeal
Matter
Matter is a general term for the substance of which all physical objects consist. Typically, matter includes atoms and other particles which have mass. A common way of defining matter is as anything that has mass and occupies volume...
thing, unless we know that we know everything about the mind. But we don’t know that we know everything about the mind. So we don’t know that the mind isn’t corporeal. (2nd, 4th, 5th, 7th).
Elisabeth of Bohemia
Elisabeth of Bohemia, Princess Palatine
Elisabeth of the Palatinate , also known as Elisabeth of Bohemia, was the eldest daughter of Frederick V, who was briefly elected King of Bohemia, and Elizabeth Stuart. She ruled the Herford Abbey as Princess-Abbess Elizabeth III...
also corresponded with Descartes on the Meditations (from 1643, unpublished, at her insistence). She objected both to his description of the union between mind and body, and that virtue and moral truths seem to need to be grasped by something other than the intellect (despite Descartes's assertion that all truths must be grasped intellectually).
Collected works in French and Latin
- Oeuvres De Descartes, 11 vols., edited by Charles Adam and Paul TanneryPaul TanneryPaul Tannery was a French mathematician and historian of mathematics. He was the older brother of mathematician Jules Tannery, to whose Notions Mathématiques he contributed an historical chapter...
(Paris: Librairie Philosophique J. Vrin, 1983).
English translations
- The Philosophical Writings Of Descartes, 3 vols., translated by John Cottingham, Robert Stoothoff, and Dugald Murdoch (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988).
- The Philosophical Works of Descartes, 2 vols, translated by Elizabeth S. Haldane, and G.R.T. Ross (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1978).
- The Method, Meditations and Philosophy of Descartes, translated by John Veitch (1901)
Single works
- Meditations on First Philosophy, translated by John Cottingham (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996).
- Méditations Métaphysiques, translated by Michelle Beyssade (Paris: GF, 1993).
Further reading
- Alquié, FerdinandFerdinand AlquiéFerdinand Alquié was a French philosopher and member of the Académie des sciences morales et politiques.He taught at the lycée Louis-le-Grand and at the Sorbonne university. He was an instructor of Gilles Deleuze, who, according to Michael Hardt, charged him of drawing on biology, psychology, and...
. La découverte métaphysique de l'homme chez Descartes (Paris: PUF, 2000). - Beyssade, Jean-Marie. La Philosophie première de Descartes (Paris: Flammarion, 1979).
- Cottingham, John. (ed.) The Cambridge Companion to Descartes (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992).
- Dicker, Georges. Descartes: An Analytical and Historical Introduction (New York: OUP, 1993)
- Frankfurt, Harry. Demons, Dreamers and Madmen (Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1970).
- Gilson, ÉtienneÉtienne GilsonÉtienne Gilson was a French Thomistic philosopher and historian of philosophy...
. Etudes sur le rôle de la pensée médiévale dans la formation du système cartésien (Paris: Vrin, 1930). - Gueroult, MartialMartial GuéroultMartial Guéroult was a French philosopher and historian of philosophy, specialized in 17th century philosophy. His work was characterized by a close attention to history of philosophy, which he considered as noble as philosophy itself, and a strong demand for systematicity...
. Descartes selon L'Ordre des Raisons (Paris: Aubier, 1968). Translated by Roger Ariew as Descartes' Philosophy Interpreted According to the Order of Reasons (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1984). - Hatfield, Gary. Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Descartes and the Meditations (London: Routledge, 2003).
- Kenny, AnthonyAnthony KennySir Anthony John Patrick Kenny FBA is an English philosopher whose interests lie in the philosophy of mind, ancient and scholastic philosophy, the philosophy of Wittgenstein and the philosophy of religion...
. Descartes: A Study of His Philosophy (Bristol: Thoemmes Press, 1968). - Rorty, Amelie. (ed.) Essays on Descartes' Meditations (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1986).
- Williams, BernardBernard WilliamsSir Bernard Arthur Owen Williams was an English moral philosopher, described by The Times as the most brilliant and most important British moral philosopher of his time. His publications include Problems of the Self , Moral Luck , Ethics and the Limits of Philosophy , and Truth and Truthfulness...
. Descartes: The Project of Pure Enquiry (London: Penguin Books, 1978). - Wilson, Margaret. Descartes (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1978).
External links
- Online
- Meditationes de prima philosophia, éd. de Amstelodami, ex typographia Blavania, 1685 (VicifonsWikisourceWikisource is an online digital library of free content textual sources on a wiki, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Its aims are to host all forms of free text, in many languages, and translations. Originally conceived as an archive to store useful or important historical texts, it has...
) - Online text of the Meditations in PDF and MS Word format, translated by John Veitch
- Meditations on First Philosophy tr. by Elizabeth S. Haldane.
- Contains a version of the Meditations, and of the Objections and Replies, slightly modified for easier reading
- free audiobook at librivox.org
- Latin Text of 1641; French Translation of 1647; Veitch English Translation http://www.wright.edu/cola/descartes/medl.html
- Meditationes de prima philosophia, éd. de Amstelodami, ex typographia Blavania, 1685 (Vicifons
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy