Descartes Introduction: Meditations

This is an introduction to Rene Descartes Meditations. Descartes - born in 1596 - is often considered the father of modern philosophy. He was a radical innovator, completely sweeping away the old and inaugurating a new method – simple, pure, clear, individual thought. He claimed he read very little, and most of his work was in the sciences. When a man asked to see his library he pointed to a half dissected calf. He was primarily a mathematician. He invented the Cartesian coordinates, but today he s mostly remembered for his philosophy. There are two key philosophical works – the Discourse on Method and the Meditations – the latter is a more complete statement of his philosophy. It’s short, it’s reasonably simple, its’ groundbreaking, it’s entertaining. Descartes wants to doubt everything he knows so as to put thought and philosophy on a firm footing; he wants to discover what is certain, indubitable. He is, then focusing exclusively on reason, he’s a rationalist. So, how do we go about discovering what we know to be certain? Cogito Ergo Sum. I think, therefore I am. Then & Now is FAN-FUNDED! Support me on Patreon and pledge as little as $1 per video: http://patreon.com/user?u=3517018 Or send me a one-off tip of any amount and help me make more videos: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=JJ76W4CZ2A8J2 Buy on Amazon through this link to support the channel: https://amzn.to/2ykJe6L Follow me on: Facebook: http://fb.me/thethenandnow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thethenandnow/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/lewlewwaller Subscribe to the podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/then-now-philosophy-history-politics/id1499254204 https://open.spotify.com/show/1Khac2ih0UYUtuIJEWL47z Sources: http://lewwaller.com/enlightenment-series/