In his first meditation, Descartes sets out with amazing clarity and persistence to clear himself of every false idea that he has acquired previous to this, and determine what he truly knows. To rid him of these rotten apples he has developed a method of doubt with a goal to construct a set of beliefs on foundations which are indubitable. On these foundations, Descartes applies three levels of skepticism, which in turn, generate three levels at which our thoughts may be deceived by error. Descartes states quite explicitly in the synopsis, that we can doubt all things which are material as long as we have no foundations for the sciences other than those which we have had up till now(synopsis:12). This skepticism also implies that doubt can free us from prejudices, enabling the mind to escape the deception of the senses, and possibly discover a truth which is beyond doubt. The first and main deception in Descartes opinion has evolved from sense perception What ever I have up till now......

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Title: Descartes
Approximate Word Count: 4762
Approximate Pages: 20 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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