Discussion about Descartes
An important aspect of Descartes style or branch of philosophy is the fact that humans can not trust their senses. Are our senses real or are they something we made up in our heads? Our senses should not be trusted to interpret the world around us. What if everything we think we see, feel, hear, touch, and taste is just a dream? Are we dreaming right now? Is this discussion post something I am actually writing? This doubt in the human senses led Descartes to one conclusion and he most famously phrased it, "I think therefore I am". He is saying the only thing he can trust is that his brain is working and thinking and processing. This is important to understand if we are to talk about Descartes.
Descartes had his own methods to differentiate between real and figment of the imagination. This method was called the Method of Doubt. Descartes method of doubt was solely based on skepticism. The first step in the method was to not trust your first impression of the world around you. Your senses could fail you and you may perceive something incorrectly and make incorrect assumptions based on that first impression. The next step Descartes proposes that your mind can fabricate things just like it does when you are sleeping and you start to dream. He argues that if your mind is powerful enough to create vivid and realistic dreams then it can also fabricate something even more realistic than a dream and compromise our waking moments. In this step of the method you are urged to over exaggerate your doubt so it reaches further. The final step in the method was very controversial during the time it was said. Descartes proposed that there is a god that is omniscient god, however that his purpose was to deceive each and every one of us. Since the original proposition was so controversial for the times Descartes made other remarks for the more religious population. One of which was that since people believe in an all seeing god they also are deceiving themselves into thinking that there are demons tormenting them, forcing them to make bad decisions, and corrupting them.
In this day and age we tend to be less inclined towards religion, but I think it is safe to assume that the third step in Descartes method of doubt still applies. The third step manifests itself in the everyday monsters we battle. It could be the monster in your closet you were afraid of when you were young, or the feeling you get in your stomach when the lights go out and your eyes are adjusting and all you see is darkness. We can use this method in everyday life. We use it when we wake up form a dream that felt too real we use clues in our surroundings to determine if it is real or not. I think we can use this method in our lives it should just be a more watered down version for modern times.