1	Rene Descartes Meditation One (1596 – 1650 ) Methodological Doubt concerning things that can be doubted
2	Important Names, Terms and Concepts Rene Descartes Skepticism Methodological Doubt The Search for Certainty Suspending Judgment The Dream argument The Deceiver argument
3	Descartes’s purpose is to see what can be doubted Rene Descartes’ goal Rene Descartes asks: what if anything is certain? Descartes’ strategy is to approach the investigation by withholding belief from things that are not entirely certain as those things that are obviously false.
4	Withholding belief or the Suspension of Judgment The logic of belief differs from the notion of truth There are two possibilities regarding the truth of a statement A statement is either true or false There are possible attitudes towards belief One can believe the statement – accept it as true One can disbelieve the statement – reject it as false One can withhold belief in the statement – neither believe nor disbelieve the statement
5	Diagram of the two views
6	Example of a belief attitude towards a statement Suppose we consider the statement “God Exists” A Theist is a person that believes the statement that God exists An Atheist is a person that disbelieves the statement that God exists An Agnostic is a person that withholds belief concerning the statement that God Exists
7	Continuing the Investigation Descartes method of doubt Descartes decides, rather than attempting to disbelieve each and every belief individually, he will challenge the basic principles on which the beliefs are grounded Descartes explains that everything he previously accepted and considered as most obvious and certain has been based on the senses Descartes also notes that he has found out that sometimes these beliefs have turned out to be false
8	Cartesian Dialectical Method Descartes uses a dialectical technique by taking a pro and con position towards what can legitimately doubted His first step points out that perceptions made in poor conditions are suspect This step could be considered as a application of common sense
9	The Dream Argument Descartes then counters common sense with the skeptical doubt that perceptions in favorable conditions can also be doubted He poses the question: would I not be considered insane if I questioned these sorts of perceptions? His answer is No! For even perceptions occurring in ideal conditions of observation may be indistinguishable from vivid dreams
10	Descartes’s Dream Argument I sometimes have vivid dreams that are qualitatively just like my best (waking) perceptions If I sometimes have vivid Dreams that are qualitatively just like my best perceptions, then I cannot distinguish with certainty between my best perceptions and vivid dreams I cannot distinguish with certainty my best perceptions and vivid dreams
11	Dream argument continued If I cannot distinguish with certainty between my best perceptions and vivid dreams, then even my best perceptions provide no certainty So, if my best perceptions provide no certainty, then I should withhold my belief from these beliefs. I should neither accept nor reject them until something certain can be established.
12	Descartes considers the source of dreams Descartes trying to salvage some hope for perception suggests that surely the images must be derived from something real. He also considers the idea that mathematics must be secure even in dreams. Descartes finds that even these claims can be doubted.
13	Descartes postulates a God that could put ideas in our mind Descartes using another though experiment supposes that possibly God could put these ideas in our head without any reality corresponding to these ideas. It would then in principle be possible to doubt whether the source was anything real or Perhaps there is no Physical world at all and even simple mathematics can then be doubted. But Descartes wonders why God would do such a thing.
14	Objections to the Deceiver argument Descartes anticipates two possible objections to the deceiver argument The first is that God is supremely good. The second is that perhaps God is not all powerful. Each of these objections lead to other difficulties. If God is not all powerful, then it is more likely that I am deceived therefore supporting the contrary point The other difficulty has to do with supposing that God is all good. This Problem baffles Descartes and he decides to set it aside till he returns to it in Meditation Four. In order to make it easier to see the connection between God perhaps being a deceiver and the Evil Demon Hypothesis, we will call this difficulty the Problem of Error
15	The Problem of Error The Problem of Error becomes apparent when we follow the reasoning supposing the God is all good and therefore not a deceiver. Descartes wonders well if this is true which he is inclined to believe, then why to we make errors at all. In other words if we can be fooled some of the time ( which we certainly can be ) then how can we be positive that we are not fooled all of the time. This problem seems to be so difficult that Descartes decides to introduce a new hypothesis to allow him to continue and not get bogged down by it. Rather than supposing that God is a deceiver he imagines an Evil demon or genius putting these false beliefs in our minds.
16	Descartes‘s Evil Demon The last stage of the method of doubt involves Descartes imagining an evil demon. The evil demon’s goal is to make you believe things that are not true. Descartes uses the Evil Demon Hypothesis as a way to test whether an idea is clear and distinct. It is a quality control tool to determine if a belief is certain. If a belief can be certain despite the efforts of an evil demon trying to confuse and confound us then Descartes maintains that we can then build on this foundation of certainty. But if there is no belief that can pass this test perhaps we will be forced to accept Skepticism.
17	Conclusion At the end of Meditation one Descartes leaves the reader without any solid belief that is certain. He explains that this Meditation or methodological doubt is a means to finding knowledge and does not recommend that one think of it as perhaps applying to how one should live. It is a tool to follow or reasoning to determine clear and distinct ideas.
18	Class Room Discussion A large group format will be used to discuss Dreams. Some of the questions for discussion will be: Can a person control their dreams? Can dreams be an indication for the future? How can we interpret our dreams? Do Dreams have any meaning at all?
19	Web sites of Interest All Six of the Meditations translated in Latin and English A nice account of the Method of Doubt and a table that describes the pro and con twists in Descartes argument