1. What is Descartes' goal in the 3rd meditation (hint: it may not become fully clear until the 4th paragraph)? Why does he try to solve this problem after the thoughts he had in Meditation II? How do they relate?
2. On p. 32, he writes, "When ideas are considered only in themselves, since I do not refer them to anything else they cannot, strictly speaking, be false." What could he mean by this? How does this relate to this idea of his certainty about being a ‘Thinking Thing?'
3. Key to Descartes argument in meditation 3 will be the 'causes of ideas'. What do you think he means by the 'causes of ideas'? What are 'greater' ideas and what would be a 'lesser' ideas? What does he mean by ideas 'greater than himself'?
4. In Meditation 3, Descartes gives his famous 'ontological argument' for the existence of God. Attempt to set out that argument in standard form below (3 steps), explain the argument briefly, and then analyze if it is valid and sound.
5. A key summary of the argument is found in the quote, "although I could perhaps pretend that such a being (God) does not exist, I cannot pretend that the idea of such a being represents nothing real to me." How does this comment nicely summarize the Ontological Argument? What exactly does he mean by saying it?
6. At the end of the Meditation, Descartes connects the proving of God's existence to Skepticism. He writes, "It follows clearly enough that he cannot be a deceiver, since it is evidence by the natural light of reason that every fraud and deception results from some defect." How does Descartes think Meditation III has solved the Skepticism of Meditation I? How has proving God's existence solved the problem of questioning the existence of all reality? Has he succeeded? Why or why not?