Essay on Meditations on First Philosophy: What Is the "I" and How Does He Establish It?

Rene Descartes meditations can be viewed to contribute in the structuring of the philosophical thought as per his efforts in trying to comprehend the things in his environment including his self-knowledge. The scholar ponders on the view that he has regularly misjudged certain issues that he had perceived first to be sure in which he decides to get rid of the notions and start his knowledge of things afresh in which he only approves claims that tend to be certain. He perceives that the knowledge that he initially gained was acquired from the senses and hence by integrating doubt, he sets aside all the knowledge that he acquired from the senses. Descartes main argument is that he cannot depend on his senses since that can easily be influenced by the supernatural. By establishing the I concept, Descartes makes a comprehensive argument for the existence of various aspects. Descartes establishes the I by proving his existence concerning the body and mind.

Metaphysics plays an important and fundamental role in the whole of his philosophical system. He chooses to put aside all that he thought he knew and to start afresh in developing his knowledge through skepticism. Descartes explains that he frees himself from any form of worry for him to be able to critic what he thinks he knows. The philosopher states, Accordingly, I have today suitably freed my mind of all cares, secured for myself a period of tranquility, and am withdrawing into solitude, (Descartes 13). He views all that he thinks he knows to emanate from the senses and that the senses tend to be manipulative. He explains that people with mental problems have been subjected to immense manipulations and that he does not have to worry since he is not among them or question his mental stability. The first meditation can be viewed to set the foundation for skepticism in his meditation whereby the doubts are viewed as separate constructs. It can be perceived that in his meditations, Descartes provides us with a method of radical skepticism. The method, instead of applying a sense of skeptical skepticism, it puts into view breaking down or finding out what is doubtful to attain the most distinct and clear truths. It is perceived that the sources of human knowledge begin with the senses, the scientific knowledge system, and maybe from human judgments. However, the question raised by Descartes meditation is: The question posed is: what is the source of knowledge that brings certainty? Descartes puts first into analysis the cognitive abilities of the senses. He explains that he found out that the senses had sometimes misled him in perception. He states, Surely whatever I had admitted until now as most true I received either from the senses or through the senses. However, I have noticed that the senses are sometimes deceptive; and it is a mark of prudence never to place our complete trust in those who have deceived us even once (Descartes 18).

In the second meditation, Descartes institutes the concept of I in which he makes the conclusion that he indeed exists. He presents a systematic argument by first asserting that he does not exist, he has a memory which is manipulated, and that he does not have the senses or his body with the view that constructs such as movements and places are mistaken analogies. The main argument is that certainty is questionable. Descartes then asserts that the fact that he engaged in meditation implied that he was something that was in existence. Therefore, for him to engage in any speculation, he had to be an existing being. Also, for him to be manipulated by an evil spirit, he had to exist for the manipulation to take place. In other words, the I must be in place for it to be manipulated. Descartes states, For it is so obvious that is I who doubt, I who understand, and I who will, that there is nothing by which it could be explained more clearly, (Descartes 20). The structure of the basic argument is;

a. Whatever thinks exists

b. I am capable of thinking

c. Therefore, I am present

Descartes then engages in rational thought from the perspective that the lack of intellect makes it challenging to comprehend the things in our environment. He assumes that the mind is well-acquainted than the body. His argument is that the I lacks the certainty that what is viewed by I exists. Nonetheless, the thinking associated with I shows that I is in existence. In short, any process associated with perception implies that the mind exists which means that the mind is well-acquainted than the body. It can be perceived that Descartes implies that he is more knowledgeable of the activities that are taking place in the mind when compared to those taking place extrinsically.

As stated earlier, by establishing the I concept, Descartes makes a comprehensive argument for the existence of various aspects. Descartes establishes the I by proving his existence concerning the body and mind. He perceives that the knowledge that he initially gained was acquired by the senses and hence by integrating doubt, he sets aside all the knowledge that he acquired from the senses.

Work Cited

Descartes, Rene. Meditations on First Philosophy, third edition. Cambridge: Hackett Publishing Company, 1993. Print.