Rene Descartes Dualism Theory

Though humans have been perceived and acknowledge matter through senses including taste, smell, sight, touch, and hearing, but activity of the brain is not considered to be a sense. Descartes believed that there are solely two substances to ever exist, mind and matter. Descartes supposed that the body is nothing but a statue or a machine where the way the body functions can be accounted for mechanically except for the activities of the mind where none can be seen, touched, smelled, tasted or heard. Along with sensation, Descartes believes that the mind also influences the body through emotions and feelings. This theory is called “Dualism”, introduced by Descartes, proposing the theory explaining the unification of, two different substances, …show more content…
At a young age he was sent to boarding school by his father who was highly concerned about his son’s education. Descartes studied rhetoric and logic and the “mathematical arts” which helped preparing him for his philosophical future. Spending four years studying law at the University of Poitiers, Descartes later joined the army and was introduced to Isaac Beeckman, a Dutch scientist and philosopher whom Descartes was highly influenced. Descartes was considered a mathematician based on majority of his works including the Cartesian geometry, his laws of refraction, and his study on theoretical physics. Descartes developed the concept of methodological skepticism which is also known as Cartesian doubt which he questioned about the true existence matter though our senses. He investigated the meaning of the natural world through science and mathematics with his belief of all truths were ultimately linked. He contemplated about the nature of existence and dualism, where the mind and body are two separated substances, and later published Discourse on the Method, Descartes and Meditations on First …show more content…
For instance, mathematically, the square cannot have more than four sides but it is uncertain about their existence to form what is defined as an object called “a square”. Also, in mathematics, numbers are defined as a value, or an amount, represented by unique symbols, digits. There are two types of numbers, real number which exists on the number line and complex number or as defined as “imaginary number” which is outside of the number line. Real numbers are accepted as a simple idea where their properties can be proven using logic and reasoning, while for imaginary number or “i” cannot exists on the number line because square-root of a negative number is irrational, yet Cardano, an Italian mathematician, had a discussion on the cubic equations with the lack of the proper, real solution. The theory on imaginary number explains that though it does not exist on the number line, or what is applied to define the value of each digit, yet it is proven to exist. Similarly, it is possible to determine existence of the