Descartes vs Locke Essay Example for Free

Descartes vs Locke Essay Socrates once said, â€Å"As for me, all I know is that I know nothing. † Several philosophers contradicted Socrates’ outlook and believed that true knowledge was in fact attainable. This epistemological view however had several stances to it, as philosophers held different beliefs in regards to the derivation of true knowledge. Rationalists believed that the mind was the source of true knowledge, while in Empiricism, true knowledge derived from the senses. Rene Descartes, a rationalist, and John Locke, an empiricist, were prime examples of epistemologists who were seen to differentiate greatly within each of their philosophies. However, although Descartes and Locke’s ideas did contrast in that sense, they both shared common concepts that helped mould the basis of their ideas. Descartes and Locke both agreed that there were things in life that exist that we can be certain of. For Descartes, human experiences did not provide sufficient proof of existence. He indicated that through his Dream Conjecture and his Evil-Demon Theory (Paquette 205). Descartes stated that we cannot be certain if reality is a dream or not, thus questioning our existence (Paquette 205). In his Evil-Demon Theory, Descartes claimed that for all he knew, an evil demon could be putting thoughts into his head, making him think that reality was true when it was in fact false (Paquette 205). Ultimately, all this thinking resulted in Descartes coming to the conclusion that the one thing we could be sure of existing is the mind (Newman 2010). This can be seen through his most famous quote, â€Å"I think therefore I am (Kaplan 2008). † Descartes claimed that since he was able to doubt and think using his mind, his mind must exist (Paquette 205). Similarly, Locke was also sure of existence. He believed that every object was made up of primary qualities as well as secondary qualities (Paquette 212). Secondary qualities rely on how a person senses the object subjectively, and is experienced differently depending on the individual (Paquette 212). Examples of secondary qualities include colour, taste, and sound (Paquette 212). Primary qualities, however, are objective and include aspects such as an object’s height and weight (Paquette 212). Through this, Locke claimed that the existence of objects can be made certain due to the primary qualities it possesses (Paquette 212). Similar to Descartes, Locke believed in a sense of existence. However, in his view, the facts from the primary qualities proved the object exists because the object exists within itself (Paquette 212). Descartes and Locke also believed in some sense of the external world. Descartes claimed that there is in fact an external world, however it does not exist outside people’s minds (Paquette 206). Since Descartes was a rationalist, he believed that the only method to acquire true knowledge was solely through the mind (Moore 2002). Through the process of doubting existence, Descartes realized that the mind exists (Paquette 205). He went further into thought and concluded that since he, an imperfect person, has knowledge of perfection, something perfect has to exist to have put that knowledge in his mind. From there he claimed the existence of God (Newman 2010). Descartes then stated that a perfect god would not deceive his people, indicating that the material world exists (Newman 2010). Therefore through this thinking process, Descartes came to the conclusion that the real world is of the mind, and the external world is everything else that falls into the material world made by god (Newman 2010). Like Descartes, Locke also believed in an external world. As an empiricist, Locke relied heavily on the senses to provide true knowledge (Moore 2002). He shared Aristotle’s belief that the mind is a blank slate, also known as tabula rasa, at birth (Paquette 211). Our sense experiences thereafter provide us with knowledge to fill in those slates (Paquette 211). In Locke’s â€Å"Representative Theory of Perception,† also known as Epistemological Dualism, he stated that material objects exist and are separate entities from human beings (Paquette 227). However, he also believed that objects exist in the mind as psychological entities (Paquette 227). Locke concluded that people can taste, smell, touch, and see the external world which, in turn, becomes impressions in our minds (Paquette 227). Descartes and Locke are thus seen to be similar in the sense that they both believed in an external world. Descartes and Locke both had a process for understanding knowledge as well. As a rationalist, Descartes believed in innate ideas; that all humans were born with some knowledge (Paquette 206). This differentiates from the empirical view that the mind is a blank slate at birth (Paquette 211). Descartes also used intuition and deduction to establish truth (Kaplan 2008). He believed that intuition is direct knowledge which can be known without ever sensing or experiencing it (Paquette 206). Deduction however, is where you start with a premise, or a statement you believe to be true, and then determine more truths based on that origin (Paquette 206). As shown, Descartes focused on the thinker and the thinking process when determining true knowledge (Paquette 206). Rather than a thinking process, Locke believed that understanding knowledge came from a process based on our senses (Paquette 211). He believed that when the external world triggers any of our five senses, those experiences turn into sensations (Paquette 211). Those sensations then turn into impressions in our mind, thus adding knowledge onto the slate in our mind which was once blank (Paquette 211). He claimed that our mind reflects on the impressions we received from our sensations (Paquette 211). Locke then stated that those reflections turn into an idea which can be either simple, or made up of a bundle of simple ideas called complex ideas (Paquette 211). Like Descartes, Locke is seen to use a process for finding knowledge as well. There are many aspects to Rene Descartes and John Locke’s philosophies that are clearly distinct from one another. However, it is essentially incorrect to claim that rationalist Descartes and empiricist Locke bear no similarities. The two epistemologists are seen to share a similar base within each of their philosophical ideas. Through the many differences between Descartes and Locke, their basic concepts of existence, the external world, and the process for obtaining knowledge are quite similar to each other. This connexion illustrates that although the ideologies people possess on life vary to a great extent, there can always be some sense of a common ground that brings us all together. Works Cited Kaplan, R. Philosophy In our time. BBC Homepage. BBC News. , 2008. Web. 12 Nov. 2011. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦http://www. bbc. co. uk/radio4/history/ Moore, B. Philosophy | Glossary. Online Learning Centre. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦2002. Web. 12 Nov. 2011. http://highered. mcgraw-†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦hill. com/sites/076742011x/student_view0/chapter6/glossary. html. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Newman, L. Descartes epistemology.

Homer :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Homer’s epic, The Odyssey, women play an integral role in the life of Odysseus, the story’s protagonist. Odysseus is forced to leave the comforts of Ithaca because of a woman, Helen, and he longs to return to his home largely for a woman, his wife Penelope. Throughout his journey, however, it is Circe who has a heavy influence on Odysseus because she is a major distraction and thus an obstacle for the renowned hero. Indeed, Circe’s comeliness coupled with her sorcery, and her kindness along with lavish hospitality all distract Odysseus and impede him from swiftly returning home.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With her otherworldly beauty and enchantments, Circe is a distraction for Odysseus and therefore an obstacle on his road to Ithaca. With her sensuality and magic potions, Circe is able to get that which she desires from men. After Odysseus, guided and forewarned by Hermes, drinks Circe’s potion and is not bewitched, Circe is â€Å"amazed† for â€Å"no other man has ever resisted† her magic (X, 348-350). Although Circe is probably used to fulfilling her sexual desires with men she has enchanted, she nevertheless tries to go to bed with Odysseus. She tells him, â€Å"Climb into my bed and tangle in love there, so we may come to trust each other† (X, 356-357). Odysseus tries to resist the charming goddess and tells her that she must promise no more â€Å"trouble† for him, but as soon as she does that which he asks he â€Å"[climbs] into Circe’s beautiful bed† (X, 366-369). After ten years of fighting, Odyssey has grown quite lonely. He has been away from Penelope, his wife and the only other woman who most likely fulfilled his needs and desires, and Circe is putting forth very tempting offers. Although her potion did not have an effect on him, Circe’s physical beauty definitely appealed to Odysseus; otherwise, he would have cunningly found something to do other than engaging in an intimate act with Circe. The goddess-nymph has many a trick up her sleeve, and she could have also found another way to get Odysseus to go to bed with her. She had no need to do such a thing because Odysseus was in a vulnerable state. Months at sea and at war can be quite trying on anyone, so Odysseus was susceptible to falling for someone--especially someone as seductive as Circe. With physical beauty and magical powers, Circe distracts Odysseus and hampers his return to Ithaca.

Nietzche’s Moral and Political Philosophy Essay

In â€Å"Nietzche’s Moral and Political Philosophy† Nietzches theory of the strong and weak willed is explained to us. Nietzsche â€Å"seems to want to say that anyone who is strong, independent, and so on — anyone who fits his description o the higher type of man — is one who has value in himself†. I think it is interesting that Nietzsche puts such high value on a man who can think for himself, but if this man has followers and admirers of his work, these followers are considered weak willed. If everyone in the world thought for himself and broke free of the society accepted norms, our World would be one of mad chaos. Nobody believing each other or taking another mans word, everyone having to find out for themselves, and everyone trying to rise above another to â€Å"break free from societal norms†. Although it should be praised when a man has a strong will to power and can break free from the common attitudes and beliefs, i do not believe this path of master morality is something every man should do. Nietzsche seems to place a much higher value on a man that breaks free of society, and says the â€Å"followers† shape everything in society to work against this man,â€Å"[m]oral judgments and condemnations constitute the favorite revenge of the spiritually limited against those less limited† (BGE 219), and he claims that the â€Å"chief means† by which the â€Å"weak and mediocre†¦weaken and pull down the stronger† is â€Å"the moral judgment†. To better understand this you could say, that the Government (the weak willed) put restrictions on citizens to get them to conform to societal norms. The goal of this is to weaken the citizens and prevent them from rising above the government. In the example I used above I would [Type text] [Type text] [Type text] argue to Nietzsche that in rising above this weak willed government in order to become a strong willed person, could mean i am breaking laws and harming others in order to fit in the master morality category. How would he explain criminals who â€Å"break free of societal norms and attitudes† but do it by unjust means? I think this theory of what a strong and weak willed man is, is very questionable. Although you should aspire to question what you are taught and common beliefs are, i don’t believe all men who do this are â€Å"strong-willed†.

The Link Between Creativity and Bipolar Disorder,...

THE LINK BETWEEN CREATIVITY AND BIPOLAR DISORDER The Link Between Creativity and Bipolar Disorder Creativity is related with bipolar disorder is a popular assumption. The fact that many creative people, including Van Gogh, Ernest Hemingway, Leo Tolstoy, and Sylvia Plath, suffered from some kind of mental disorders triggers that idea. Psychologists have been interested in this contingent link for decades. In this paper, after defining both terms, I examine three articles that report the results of the research concerning the potential relationship between creativity and bipolar disorder. Paulus Nijstad (2003) defined creativity as â€Å"the development of original ideas that are useful or influential†(p.3). That is to say,†¦show more content†¦The findings revealed that children with bipolar patients scored significantly higher on the creativity measure than the healthy children with healthy parents. Bipolar adults’ children had higher creativity even they did not have bipolar disorder (Chang, Ketter, Simeono va Strong, 2005). The previous research showed an association between creativity and bipolar disorder, but this is the first study that examined creativity in the offspring of bipolar patients. Simon Kyaga and colleagues conducted another study involving 1.2 million Swedish people in 2012. The participants included people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, unipolar depression, autism and some other kinds of mental disorders. The results supported the existing evidence for the link between creativity and bipolar disorder. They found no correlation between creativity and psychopathology aside from bipolar disorder (Kyaga et al., 2012). According to the research findings, people with creative professions were %8 more likely to suffer from bipolar disorder. On the contrary, people in creative professions were considerably less likely encounter with the other conditions such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, unipolar depression, anxiety disorders, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, autism, ADHD, and committing suicide. However, the first-degree relatives of people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and anorexia nervosa were more likely to hold creative occupations. They also demonstrated