René Descartes's Regulae ad directionem ingenii ('Rules for the Direction of the Understanding') is his earliest surviving philosophical treatise, and in many respects his most puzzling text. It is a profoundly original work with few intellectual precursors, and offers the fullest account anywhere in Descartes's work of his theory of method. Yet Descartes left it unfinished, and unpublished, at his death in 1650. The versions currently known to modern readers are all posthumous: a manuscript copied for Leibniz (...) in the late seventeenth century, a Dutch translation of 1684, and the version printed in 1701 in Amsterdam. As a result, the details and date of its composition, its fragmentary, unfinished state, and its philosophical content have long puzzled scholars. The discovery by Richard Serjeantson in 2011 of a previously unknown, early manuscript draft of the Regulae in Cambridge University Library was a hugely significant event in Cartesian scholarship. This edition presents the Cambridge manuscript of the Regulae alongside the 1701 Amsterdam version of the text to allow comparison between the early manuscript draft and the version best-known to modern readers, together with a full English translations of both texts. It is also the first critical edition of the Regulae to take into account the full range of textual witnesses to the text, both manuscript and printed. The new Cambridge manuscript sheds important light on the composition, date, and philosophical content of the Regulae, and will provoke scholars to rethink key questions about Descartes's early philosophical development. (shrink)

"Rene Descartes is often called the 'Father of Modern Philosophy.' The profound controversies that his doctrines have engendered are alone sufficient to establish his eminence. Yet if he is to be paid a due respect, it is necessary to understand him on his own terms- to distinguish his doctrines from myriad notions labeled 'Cartesian.' The quest for certainty may be a constitutional imperative for every philosopher; in the case of Descartes it was an acknowledged passion. Thus there is (...) no more fitting approach to him than to study seriously his claims to having attained certainty regarding what he took to be the questions of metaphysics, namely, the questions of the existence of God and of the nature of the human mind."--The Preface. (shrink)

English summary: This text, compiled in the 19th century, is considered to be the ultimate reference edition of the complete works of Rene Descartes and is the only truly complete edition to date. This work includes all of Descartes correspondence and scientific work, both of which are essential to understanding of the Cartesian enterprise. French description: Sans cesse lu et etudie, Descartes exerca une influence considerable en Europe des le XVIIe siecle. Le projet de l'edition des oeuvres (...) completes de Descartes a ete lance en 1894 par le Ministere de l'Instruction publique, et entrepris par un comite comprenant entre autre Emile Boutroux, Xavier Leon, Louis Liard, Charles Adam et Paul Tannery. Ces deux derniers, veritables maitres d'oeuvre de ce travail, aides par l'editeur, ne negligerent rien pour pouvoir presenter a l'Exposition universelle de 1900, une edition qui fut digne du philosophe et de son pays. Elle est desormais universellement consideree comme l'edition de reference de l'oeuvre cartesienne et est constamment citee dans les travaux d'erudition. Elle est la seule edition veritablement complete a ce jour, et comprend notamment l'ensemble de la correspondance et de l'oeuvre scientifique, toutes deux essentielles a une bonne comprehension de l'entreprise cartesienne. (shrink)

René Descartes n'est pas un auteur consacré de la littérature politique. Pourtant ses textes contiennent de nombreuses vues sur la société et sur l'Etat. Ils définissent la conduite que doit suivre en politique le Philosophe, mais aussi le Prince. Les éléments de sa politique sont, il est vrai, dispersés dans toute son oeuvre et dans son abondante correspondance. Ils sont également illustrés par sa vie. Le premier intérêt de cet ouvrage est de réunir dans un dictionnaire comprenant environ 170 (...) entrées les textes relatifs aux idées, aux sentiments et aux actes politiques de Descartes. Deux études rappellent le contexte historique et mettent en évidence l'actualité de la politique de Descartes. Ses vues sur l'Etat se montrent bien plus modernes que celle de Machiavel ou Hobbes. Et ses préoccupations essentielles sont de tous les temps. Comment avoir une pensée indépendante sans être persécuté? un esprit libre sans troubler ou ruiner la République? Comment se gouverner selon la raison dans la nef de fous décrite par Erasme? Comment ^tre un homme de paix dans un siècle de sang?...Reprochera-t-on à cette politique d'être modeste? Depuis deux ou trois siècle, on semble n'avoir d'estime que pour les systèmes et les utopies, même si tout système est une falsification, même si les lendemains ne chantent jamais. Descartes ne fait pas voyager au pays des chimères, il ne construit pas de mythes. Il enseigne à vivre content et sans illusions, à marcher avec assurance dans le monde comme il va. Voilà pourquoi il est urgent de relire Descartes. (shrink)

The paper advances the hypothesis that René Descartes presents a skeptical system of philosophy in Thomas Reid’s reading. There is a sort of ‘involun-tary’ or ‘accidental’ skepticism that results from the adoption by Descartes of both a skeptical method and a skeptical principle. The first section shows to what extent the Cartesian method of doubt – which focuses on the reliability of the faculties of the mind - is a skeptical demand that cannot be satisfied. The second section (...) shows how the principle of the Cartesian system – which establishes that ideas are the immediate objects of the operations of the mind – is not only skeptic but leads exactly and naturally to the most radical form of skepticism, namely, solipsism. The third section discusses the Cartesian sources of the doubt on the existence of external world according to Reid. (shrink)

Between the years 1643 and 1649, Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia and René Descartes exchanged fifty-eight letters—thirty-two from Descartes and twenty-six from Elisabeth. Their correspondence contains the only known extant philosophical writings by Elisabeth, revealing her mastery of metaphysics, analytic geometry, and moral philosophy, as well as her keen interest in natural philosophy. The letters are essential reading for anyone interested in Descartes’s philosophy, in particular his account of the human being as a union of mind and body, (...) as well as his ethics. They also provide a unique insight into the character of their authors and the way ideas develop through intellectual collaboration. Philosophers have long been familiar with Descartes’s side of the correspondence. Now Elisabeth’s letters—never before available in translation in their entirety—emerge this volume, adding much-needed context and depth both to Descartes’s ideas and the legacy of the princess. Lisa Shapiro’s annotated edition—which also includes Elisabeth’s correspondence with the Quakers William Penn and Robert Barclay—will be heralded by students of philosophy, feminist theorists, and historians of the early modern period. (shrink)

Desde o ano de 1643, Descartes (1596-1650) e a princesa Elizabeth (1618-1680) já trocavam cartas a respeito da geometria, da metafísica e até da física cartesiana. Todavia, no ano de 1645, por conta de um grave estado melancólico da princesa, houve uma intensa correspondência entre ambos. À princípio, o debate se mantinha em torno das condições especificas da princesa. O tema central girava em torno de questões fisiológicas e morais (ou psicofisiológicas). À medida, porém, em que a troca de (...) correspondência se intensificava, o debate ia tornando-se cada vez mais teórico, passando pela discussão da Vida Beata, de Sêneca, até forçar Descartes a apresentar os primeiros esboços de sua própria concepção moral. Dessa troca de correspondência, escolhemos duas cartas de setembro de 1645: uma do filósofo a Elizabeth (carta CDIII) e outra da princesa a Descartes carta (CDVI). (shrink)

René Descartes (1596-1650) is often presented as the founder of the "dualistic" thesis radically separating the soul from the body, in early modern philosophy. As such, he is likely to have initiated two kinds of revolutions: a revolution in the study of nature and living being(understood as inanimate), on the one hand; and a revolution in the study of the human mind(understood as the foundation of all knowledge), on the other. This entry focuses on his scientific work and overall (...) reception, as a way of understanding the interaction of these two fields. (shrink)

»Descartes, der größte Demokrat«. Auch wenn dieser Satz nicht den Weg in die Endfassung des zweiten Bandes der Démocratie gefunden hat, so fasst er doch wahrscheinlich besser als jeder andere Tocquevilles Ansichten über seinen Landsmann René Descartes und dessen Philosophie zusammen. Das erste Kapitel, in dem »die philosophische Methode der Amerikaner« vorgestellt wird, zeigt, wieso die Philosophie Descartes’ – mit der sich Tocqueville vermutlich 1834, zusammen mit seinem Freund Kergorlay, eingehender befasst hatte – einen derart großen Erfolg (...) in Amerika hat, obwohl die allerwenigsten Amerikaner Descartes kennen, geschweige denn seine Werke, allen voran den berühmten Discours de la méthode, gelesen haben. (shrink)

The major goal of René Descartes’s rich and penetrating recent book, Meditations on First Philosophy, is to develop a methodology for the discovery of the truth, more specifically, a methodology that accommodates the dictates of a mathematical physics for our view of physical reality. Such a methodology must accordingly deal with and seek to defuse the apparent conflict between a mathematical physics and our commonsense picture of things, a conflict that continues to pose difficult challenges. Though much in the (...) book is devoted to an account of the mind, that focus results from the broader goal of finding a methodology for discovery that will deliver an overall picture of reality consonant with a mathematical physics. Much that Descartes says in this book may strike many readers as extravagant and implausible, and perhaps hardly worth serious consideration. But there is a line of argument one can extract that is challenging and often compelling, even if not in the end wholly convincin .. (shrink)

An introduction to Descartes as a philosopher. Situates his philosophy within the context of Descartes' efforts to forge a new natural philosophy, including original work on the theory of the senses and the passions and emotions.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be (...) preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant. (shrink)

This chapter contains section titled: The Metaphysics of Matter The Metaphysics of Mind The Metaphysics of God God, Doubt, and Certainty Descartes' Reception.

This anthology brings together many of the more significant contributions to Cartesian scholarship, some of which reach far back as the 1930s. Altogether, there are well over 100 detailed analyses and discussions of salient aspects of Descartes' Promethean legacy. Because Descartes intended his system to embrace not only philosophy but also a complete scientific corpus, this collection covers both philosophical issues and scientific views: Volume 1 is devoted to questions of Cartesian Method and epistemology; Volumes 2 and 3 (...) concentrate on his metaphysics; and Volume 4 discusses Descartes' scientific views and achievements. The lucidity and originality of the essays, a number of which are already classics of Cartesian scholarship, will ensure that this anthology becomes a standard in Cartesian philosophy. An invaluable resource, Rene;e Descartes provides a large variety of introductions, analyses, criticisms, and appraisals of the problems which preoccupied Descartes and the solutions he propounded. (shrink)

Die „Meditationen“ sind ohne Zweifel ein Meilenstein und ein Meisterwerk des abendländischen Denkens. Durch sie wurde Descartes zum,Vater der modernen Philosophie‘ – und die Erkenntnistheorie auf Jahrhunderte zu deren Fundamentaldisziplin. Bis heute eignet sich kaum ein anderes epochemachendes Werk besser dazu, in der Auseinandersetzung mit den Argumentationsgängen eines Klassikers selbst zu erfahren, was philosophisches Denken ist – und wie es geht. Die neun Kapitel dieses Kommentars sind Originalbeiträge. Sie sollen Studierende und Dozenten bei der Lektüre begleiten und dazu beitragen, (...) das intellektuelle Vergnügen an der Tiefe der „Meditationen“ noch zu steigern. Mit Beiträgen von: Lilli Alanen, Gary Hatfield, Andreas Hüttemann, Andreas Kemmerling, Tobias Rosefeldt, Andreas Schmidt und Hans-Peter Schütt. (shrink)

Margaret J. Osler - René Descartes: Tutte le lettere, 1619-1650 - Journal of the History of Philosophy 45:2 Journal of the History of Philosophy 45.2 332-333 Muse Search Journals This Journal Contents Reviewed by Margaret J. Osler The University of Calgary Giulia Belgioioso, editor. René Descartes: Tutte le lettere, 1619–1650. Testo francese, latino, e olandese. Milano: Bompiani/ Il Pensiero Occidentale, 2005. lviii + 3104. Cloth, e 48.00. The publication of a new scholarly edition of important primary sources is (...) an event to be celebrated. This new edition of Descartes's correspondence—the fruit of decades of close textual study by Giulia Belgioioso.. (shrink)

Even though the seventeenth-century French philosopher René Descartes has been remembered primarily for his contributions to Western philosophy, he also showed a curiosity about many aspects of the natural world. His mechanistic and rationalistic methods have been criticized as often as they have been praised, but they provided a framework for subsequent scientific inquiry.

Principles of Philosophy. Author’s Letter to the Translator (Preface).

During the fifteenth century, the Scientific Revolution signaled a major shift in the way people viewed the natural world. Today, René Descartes is perhaps best known as the father of modern Western philosophy, but he also played an important role in the development of a rational approach toward scientific questions. He was a gifted mathematician and his examinations of the natural world led him to develop theories about light, the formation of the universe, and how the human mind works. (...) This biography shows how Descartes's rational method inspired his own discoveries and continues to resonate today. (shrink)

This version has been superseded by the one published in Spring, 2014.

René Descartes (1596–1650) was born at La Haye, near Tours in France. He entered the Jesuit School at La Flèche in 1606, where he studied Latin and Greek and the classical authors, and acquired respect for the certainty of mathematics and distaste for the theories of Aristotle as developed by medieval commentators. In 1616, he took a degree in law at the University of Poitiers. There followed a period during which he travelled, for some of the time as a (...) gentleman-officer in the armies of Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange, and Maximilian, Duke of Bavaria. In 1625 he returned to Paris and renewed his acquaintance with Father Marin Mersenne, who was later instrumental in making his views known to many of the famous intellectuals in Europe. From 1628 to 1649 he lived in Holland and worked out in detail the scientific, philosophical and mathematical ideas that had engaged him during his travels. His main philosophical works are Rules for the Direction of the Mind, written in 1629–30 but not published until 1684, Discourse on Method, 1637, Meditations, 1641, Principles of Philosophy, 1644, and The Passions of the Soul, 1649. In 1649, Descartes accepted an invitation to visit the Queen of Sweden and instruct her in philosophy. He succumbed to the rigorous climate, and died in February 1650. (shrink)

The scale of persona of Rene Descartes, who was the founder of several trends of philosophical thought, often overshadows the intellectual life of the era and the environment that gave rise to Cartesianism. At the same time, we observe a unique situation, when the philosophical doctrine being seized by the secular educated society, rather than the intellectual elite. The key condition for such impact of the philosophical system consists in the fact that the philosophy should meet the demands the (...) era and the environment it is proliferated within. Therefore, the author places Rene Descartes and some aspects of his philosophy in a specific historical context, pursuing correlation with the thoughts and ideas of his contemporaries. This method indicates how the philosophy of Descartes completes and structures the mental transformation that have already taken place or were taking place in French society. Descartes’ perception of his mission, his appeal to future generations, should not deceive or allow to forget that Descartes is not just philosopher with whom the finest minds of the next centuries are engaged into a dialogue or debate, but also a nobleman of the XVII, who responded to the demands of his time. It were not the complicated philosophical tasks that he tried to solve, but the particular answers that influenced and formed the European mentality of the Modern Age without the fact that the perception of his philosophy by the contemporaries would of fully correspond to its essence, and the impact correspond to the letter. Affected by the philosophy of Descartes, the society develops new behavioral norms that underlie the subconscious of modern culture; and from this space of the unsconsious affect the life of modern society. (shrink)

ABSTRACT Francis Bacon and René Descartes have traditionally been presented as leaders of opposed philosophical currents. However, more and more studies show important continuities between their philosophies. This article explores one of them: their perspectives on medicine. The dominion over nature and the instinct for self-preservation are the central elements of the theoretical framework within which they inserted their assessments of medicine. Medicine is valued as the most outstanding discipline for its benefits for the care of the human being. (...) Departing from this start-point, one finds further coincidences about the status, practice, and reform of medicine. (shrink)

Descartes was born in La Haye (now Descartes) in Touraine and educated at the Jesuit college of La Fleche` in Anjou. Descartes’modern reputation as a rationalistic armchair philosopher, whose mind–body dualism is the source of damaging divisions between psychology and the life sciences, is almost entirely undeserved. Some 90% of his surviving correspondence is on mathematics and scientific matters, from acoustics and hydrostatics to chemistry and the practical problems of constructing scientific instruments. Descartes was just as (...) interested in the motions of matter as in the supernatural soul, and he advised against spending too much time on metaphysical inquiries which neglect imagination and the senses. After meeting the Dutch engineer Isaac Beeckman in 1618, Descartes became committed to a systematically ‘mechanical’account of nature. This involved explaining all natural processes in terms of interactions between microscopic material bodies in motion. Descartes modelled his physics and cosmology on the behaviour of fluids, which also have a distinctive and central role in his physiology: the key processes for natural philosophical investigation are the circulation and mutual displacement of constrained bodies, rather than the isolated collisions of atoms in a void. Descartes settled in Holland in 1628, and commenced an ambitious programme of physiological research. In 1630 he was ‘studying chemistry and anatomy simultaneously’, and in late 1632 he was ‘dissecting the heads of various animals’, in order to ‘explain what imagination, memory, etc. consist in’. By late 1633 Descartes had almost completed L’homme, the Treatise on Man; but he abandoned plans to publish it along with a work on matter theory and optics which relied on Copernican cosmology, after he heard of the condemnation of Galileo. L’homme was published posthumously in 1662 (Latin) and 1664 (French); not until 1972 was it fully translated into English. L’homme draws on many (mostly unnamed) Renaissance medical writers, and covers, firstly, a range of traditional physiological topics, such as digestion and respiration.. (shrink)