Cogito, ergo sum – Latin: “I think, therefore I am – a dictum coined by the French philosopher René Descartes in his Discourse on Method as a first step in demonstrating the attainability of certain knowledge. He approached metaphysics and epistemology in a similar...
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Mind-body dualism
The mind-body dualism, in its original and most radical formulation, is the philosophical view that mind and body are fundamentally distinct kinds of substances or natures. That version, now often called substance dualism, implies that mind and body not only differ in...
The ghost in the machine
Although Descartes set up the stage for a metaphysical explanation of existence, not everyone accepted his mind-body dualism. In 1949, Gilbert Ryle made the famous argument against dualistic philosophy in his work The Concept of Mind. He believed that there were two...
The deceiving demon
Descartes' method of doubt was invented to help him prove his ideas were true. He said that you should try to imagine that your mind is being deceived by an evil demon. All beliefs will then start to seem false because the demon can only deceive you if you already had...
Animals as automata
In the 17th century, scientists began to see how the organic body worked and came to understand the mechanics of life. At the same time, philosophers were developing the idea that the soul existed separately from the body. While Descartes had argued against the...
Other people’s minds and consciousness
Descartes proved that the ‘I think therefore I am’ is true, using introspection as proof. His idea was very simple but very clever. He argued that since we always seem to experience ourselves thinking, then we must be conscious beings. He said that we can only be sure...
Identity
The old tale of the Ship of Theseus gives birth to many questions about the true nature of identity. Again, questions remain a much relevant part of philosophical debates. A ship that underwent several repairs throughout its lifetime to the point where no part of it...
The mind-body problem
Descartes asserted that mind and matter are essentially different in his mind-body duality theory and that physical substance is incapable of thought while mental substance is incapable of existing in space. Critics of this theory – continue to assert as well – that...
Spinoza: substance and attributes
Baruch Spinoza was a lens-maker by trade, but also a Dutch philosopher in the age of enlightenment who held astonishing knowledge of optics, physics, astronomy, and mathematics. His philosophy was inspired by Descartes’ rationalist epistemology, which reflected his...
Spinoza: God and nature
Spinoza’s Ethics is an ambitious and multifaceted work. It is also bold to the point of audacity, as one would expect of a systematic and unforgiving critique of the traditional philosophical and theological conceptions of God, the human being, and the universe,...
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Cynics: Diogenes
The great Athenian philosophers – Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle left a legacy that proved to be hard to follow. After their demise, Greek philosophy was divided into four distinct schools of thought: cynics, skeptics, Epicureans, and stoics. The cynics rose as a sect...
Sceptics: Pyrrho and his followers
Pyrrhon Of Elis was the Greek philosopher from whom Pyrrhonism takes its name; he is generally accepted as the father of the sceptics. Scepticism, also spelled skepticism, in philosophy is the attitude of doubting knowledge claims set forth in various areas. Although...
Epicureans
In ancient polemics, the term Epicureanism was employed with a more generic meaning as the equivalent of hedonism, the doctrine that pleasure or happiness is the chief good. However, the school of thought is much more than connoted. Philosophy was, for Epicurus – the...
The immortal soul
The forefather of the Epicurean school of thought, Epicurus, was perhaps the first philosopher to systematically deny the widespread belief that humans are immortal. He established his arguments based on his theory of atomism and suggested that not only does all...
Stoics: philosophy of the Roman Empire
Stoicism is an ethical system founded on the principle that everything happens for a reason, and that reason is inherent within each individual. The Stoics believed that perception is the basis of true knowledge. In logic, their comprehensive presentation of the topic...
Free Course in Semiology
A completely and truly free course on Semiology (Semiotics). Learn about the meaning of signs, how and why did the field emerged. What is the relationship between the street signs and the signs that we use every day - words.
