Descartes Meditation Iii - 1297 Words

In the Mediations of First Philosophy Descartes tries to prove the existence of God in the third meditation. He does this by coming up with several premises that eventually add up to a solid argument. First, I will explain why Descartes ask the question, does god exist? And why does Descartes think he needs such and argument at this point in the text. Secondly, I will explain, in detail, the arguments that Descartes makes and how he comes to the conclusion that God does exist. Next, I will debate some of Descartes premises that make his argument an unsound one, including circular reasoning. Finally, I will see if his unsound argument has diminished and undermined his principal goals and the incorrigible foundation of knowledge. In†¦show more content†¦Descartes has arrived at a conclusion and has proved his argument. There were a few smaller argument that Descartes offers throughout the third meditation. One of them suggest that it is not possible to exist without the e xistence of God, given that I have an idea of him. This argument is sort of goes along with the Causal Adequacy Principle. It isnt a huge part of his argument, but does add another premise to it. Another argument that Descartes suggest in trying to prove that there is an existence of God is with the Evil Demon Theory. Descartes tries to prove that there is a God by proving that there is no evil demon and if there is no evil demon than there must be a God. This works of the premise that if there is no evil demon giving Descartes the ideas then it must be a good creator, Supreme Being or God. Now that Descartes has established his argument and proven it, we can now see whether or not his argument is sound or unsound. Descartes laid out several premises and eventually came to the conclusion that God does exist, but some of his premises can be debated and make his argument unsound. The main objection to Descartes arguments is that he uses circular reasoning. Circular reasoning i s basically defining something with itself or proving something exists with itself, for example, defining water as water. Descartes uses this all the time in is arguments. The circularity can be seen by his statements being entailed by such clearShow MoreRelatedDescartes: Meditation Iii Summary Essay836 Words   |  4 PagesJuliana Tabor Professor Webb Introduction to Philosophy 4/1/13 Descartes: Meditations 3 In Descartes’s Meditations III, the Meditator describes his idea of God as a substance that is infinite, eternal, immutable, independent, supremely intelligent, supremely powerful, and which created both myself and everything else.(70) Thus, due to his opinion in regards to the idea of God, the Meditator views God containing a far more objective reality than a formal one. 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