José Rizal

Knowledge and understanding are two terms that may seem similar in meaning. However upon further examination, one may find that there is a distinction to be made. Knowledge can be thought of as pure information, it is usually simple and easy to obtain. Everyone possesses some degree of knowledge about a variety of things. On the other hand, understanding is something more complicated and nuanced. It highlights a deeper intuitive process that occurs within subconscious levels of the mind. Someone…

Dualism has been the centre theory for the philosophy of mind since the adaptation of Plato’s original ideas about the world and the metaphysical world. However, with the fast paced development of modern age Science and further post enlightenment philosophy. There have been a number of challenges to Descartes’ position; such as the ontological reduction of the mind to the brain proposed by Mind-Brain Identity Theory. Descartes’ is known for his enlightenment, rationalist philosophy. Perhaps his…

Central to the field of cognitive science lies the mind/body problem, which questions “the relationship between mental properties and physical properties,” (Robinson). The dualist argues that the mind and body are two separate entities and that the mind only exists within the body, specifically the brain. Thus, aligned with this belief, many dualists also hold rationalist views, or that one may gain knowledge via a priori experience. The rationalist believes that “there are significant ways…

René Descartes was a modern philosopher and was dualist. He wrote The Mediations of First Philosophy in 1641. In his arguments he expresses his believes of two substances, which are Res Cogitans and Res Extensa. He will also, give you arguments about how he concluded that god existed, and will use god in his argument to show how it is possible for corporeal things to exist, as well as introduce you the mind and body problem. Descartes will at one-point doubt everything, even his existence, which…

Rene Descartes’ statement, “I at least know for certain that nothing is certain” perfectly illustrates the multiple problems that arise when all rational beings realize that their senses can deceive them and that the very foundation of their knowledge is based on the assumption that everything they encounter is real. Thankfully, being aware of the problem is the first step in solving it. The juxtaposition of Rene Descartes and William Shakespeare reveals a difference of opinion when they set…

Churchland is a materialist who believes all can be explained by physical property of matter. She says we cannot believe in god, heaven, hell, or even the soul because all we are certain of is matter. Churchland entirely denies the existence of the soul and the mind. She says all the “mind” is, is electrical connections functioning in various ways. Our neurons, impulses, etc. make us who we are. The “mind” is really just the brain – a physical thing. In this paper I will talk about Churchland’s…

Philosophy sheds light on many themes, one of the issues philosophy contends is the understanding how mind and body are related. Rene Descartes, a father of philosophical ideology devised “The Argument from Introspection” to attempt to answer such question. The argument from introspection explains that the mind and body are two entirely separate states and therefore cannot be identical to one another. Descartes’ rationale behind the argument is that the body is separable because it can be…

Philosophy 001 Project 3: Descartes 1) Cartesian dualism refers to the philosophical view proposed by the French mathematician and philosopher Rene Descartes that describes and explains the relationship of the mind and body. According to this philosophical view, the Mind and the Body are two completely separate and different substances capable of interacting with one another. Descartes asserted that “[that is, [the] mind, by which I am what I am], is entirely and truly distinct from [the] body,…

Divine mediation is the glue that holds together the morality of Antigone in Sophocles play of the same name, but the divine law of life is not as territorial as Creon’s man-made interventions. The central conflict of Antigone is between this moral divide of man or god and which one accounts for society. From the conflict analysis presented by Professor Francisco J. Gonzalez, Walter Kaufmann’s defense of the essential Greek tragedy in the case of Antigone provides a clearer perspective that both…

René Descartes’ dream argument supports his overarching argument for hyperbolic doubt, described in his Meditations on First Philosophy. The dream argument questions one’s perceptions, conscious and unconscious, and how one determines what is true and what is false. He does this by comparing experiences while awake or dreaming. Descartes continues on that since one also cannot tell the difference between what is a dream and what is real life, our perceptions could overall be false, and “assumes…