Descartes: A Very Short Introduction

by Tom Sorell

Overview

Descartes is perhaps best known for his statement, "Cogito, ergo sum," the cornerstone of his metaphysics. But he did not intend the metaphysics to stand apart from his scientific work, which included important investigations into physics, mathematics, and optics. In this book, Sorell shows that Descarates was, above all, an advocate and practitioner of the new mathematical approach to physics, and that he developed his philosophies to support his discoveries in the sciences.

About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780192854094
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	01/18/2001
Series:	Very Short Introductions , #30
Pages:	128
Product dimensions:	6.98(w) x 4.51(h) x 0.32(d)
Lexile:	1370L (what's this?)

About the Author

Tom Sorell is Lecturer in Philosophy at the Open University. His books include Knowledge and Descartes, both published by the Open University Press.

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgements	ix
	Series Preface	xi
	Introduction	xiii
Part I	Method
1	'Mathematical Demonstration and Deduction in Descartes's Early Methodological and Scientific Writings', Journal of the History of Philosophy, 31, pp. 223-44. (1993)	3
2	'Descartes: Methodological Ideal and Actual Procedure', Philosophia Naturalis, 21, pp. 577-89. (1984)	25
3	'Descartes, the Aristotelians, and the Revolution that Did Not Happen in 1637', The Monist, 71, pp. 471-86. (1988)	39
Part II	Metaphysics and Cartesian Metaphysics
4	'On Descartes' Constitution of Metaphysics', Graduate Faculty Philosophy Journal, 11, pp. 21-33. (1986)	57
5	'The Crisis of the Cogito', Synthese, 106, pp. 57-66. (1996)	71
Part III	Meditation and Doubt
6	'Descartes's Meditations as Cognitive Exercises', Philosophy and Literature, 19, pp. 41-58. (1985)	83
7	'What is Cartesian Doubt?', American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly, 67, pp. 467-95. (1993)	101
8	'Scientific and Practical Certainty in Descartes', American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly, 67, pp. 569-85. (1993)	131
Part IV	The Cogito
9	'Cogito Ergo Sum', Journal of Philosophy, 90, pp. 462-68. (1993)	151
10	'Cogito, Ergo Quis Est?', Revue Internationale de Philosphie, 50, pp. 5-21. (1996)	159
Part V	Ideas, Truth, Judgement
11	'How Can What I Perceive Be True?', History of Philosophy Quarterly, 12, pp. 185-94. (1995)	179
12	'Descartes on the Material Falsity of Ideas', Philosophical Review, 102, pp. 309-33. (1993)	189
13	'Judgment and Understanding in Descartes's Philosophy', Southern Journal of Philosophy, 21, pp. 89-99. (1983)	215
14	'Descartes's Theory of Judgment', Southern Journal of Philosophy, 21, pp. 101-10. (1983)	227
Part VI	God
15	'The Problem of the Third Meditation', American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly, 67, pp. 537-59. (1993)	239
16	'Descartes on the Creation of the Eternal Truths', Philosophical Review, 93, pp. 569-97. (1984)	263
17	'How God Causes Motion: Descartes, Divine Sustenance, and Occasionalism', Journal of Philosophy, 84, pp. 567-80. (1987)	293
Part VII	Mind and Body
18	'Descartes and the Action of Body on Mind', Studia Leibnitiana, 19, pp. 41-53. (1987)	309
19	'Descartes on the Origin of Sensation', Philosophical Topics, 19, pp. 293-323. (1991)	323
20	'Understanding Interaction: What Descartes Should Have Told Elisabeth', Southern Journal of Philosophy, 21, pp. 15-32. (1983)	355
21	'Descartes on Mind-Body Interaction and the Conservation of Motion', Philosophical Review, 102, pp. 155-82. (1993)	373
Part VIII	Matter and Motion
22	'Perfect Solidity: Natural Laws and the Problem of Matter in Descartes' Universe', History of Philosophy Quarterly, 13, pp. 187-204. (1996)	403
23	'Against Emptiness: Descartes's Physics and Metaphysics of Plenitude', Studies in History and Philosophy of Science, 25, pp. 81-96. (1994)	421
24	'Descartes and the Nature of Body', British Journal for the History of Philosophy, 2, pp. 19-33. (1994)	437
Part IX	Ethics and Anthropology
25	'The Insufficiency of Descartes' Provisional Morality', International Philosophical Quarterly, 31, pp. 275-93. (1991)	455
26	'Cartesian Ethics: Reason and the Passions', Revue Internationale de Philosophie, 50, pp. 193-216. (1996)	475
27	'Life, Science, and Wisdom According to Descartes', History of Philosophy Quarterly, 12, pp. 133-53. (1995)	499
	Name Index	521

Editorial Reviews

Much previous literature on Descartes treats his dualistic metaphysics as if it were disconnected<-->in a manner analogous to his problematic mind-body split<-->from his natural philosophy. As part of a series complementing the International Research Library of Philosophy, this volume reflects the trend in recent Descartes studies to affirm the increasing convergence of the history of science and the history of philosophy. While most of the 27 selections collected from 1983-96 readily resonate with standard English language Cartesian commentaries, several translated essays from French and Italian contributors befit Descartes' pivotal role in Western intellectual history. The nine-branched organizing schema includes essays pondering: method; metaphysics and Cartesian metaphysics; meditation and doubt; 'cogito ergo sum'; ideas, truth, and judgement; God; mind and body; matter and motion; and ethics and anthropology. Lacks a subject index. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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