Analysis Of First Philosophy: Second Meditation By Descartes

In “Meditations on First Philosophy: Second Meditation”, Descartes expands upon the doubting originated in the First Meditation, however his doubt is focused on the nature of his being. Descartes argument is that the mind and body are separate things, and that he can only consider himself a thinking thing. In this paper, I will argue that the body is part of the human nature and it is not human nature to be just a mind. Descartes begins his meditation by stating that he previously believed himself to be a man, and had no doubts his nature included a body. “By a body I understand whatever has a determinable shape and definable location and can occupy a space in such a way as to exclude any other body; it can be perceived by touch, sight, hearing, …show more content…
This deceiver strips him of the most basic knowledge of nature he had; the body. Without the body, Descartes now suggests that there are no abilities of the soul: nutrition and self-movement are no longer considered part of his abilities. He eliminates the ability for sense perception, first because he doesn’t have a body any longer, and second because he previously proved the senses to be deceiving. He then concludes his human nature only by a thing that thinks, “Thought; this alone is inseparable from me….were I totally to cease from thinking, I should totally cease to exist…. I am a mind….a thinking thing.” (MFP: …show more content…
I argue that imagination and sensation and an essence of the mind are integral in knowing the wax’s nature. The nature of wax allows it to change form based on the time-space continuum. Wax occupies a certain space in one point in time, then changes form in another. It is the nature of bodies to occupy space during a particular time and no body can occupy the same exact space at the same time. The only way that Descartes would know how this form change is possible is through previous experience: a combination of time and sensible information. Without sensation, Descartes could only base the results off of past experience. If he were only a mind, there would be no time continuum and he would be able to see the future like he sees his past and present. Time is the meeting point between more than one individual and it proves that although there can be individual experiences at the same time, every person experiences time simultaneously from a different standpoint. In order to contemplate the malleability and complexities of wax form in nature, time-relevant past sensory experiences are vital which proves the mind can’t exist