René Descartes wanted to integrate philosophy with other sciences, which was a revolutionary approach in his era. As a basis for his thinking, he decided that he would only trust things that he could see existed, without any shadow of doubt. He demonstrated how easily people can be deceived by their senses, and pointed out that things that seem completely real in dreams are not real at all. The result of this process was to leave him with nothing except the very fact of his own doubt and of himself doing the doubting, which led him to conclude, 'I think, therefore I am'.
Descartes then took this idea further, even using it to demonstrate the existence of God. Since his time, other philosophers have criticised his ideas, but he was still the first thinker to create a philosophical framework for the other sciences, and his ideas changed the thinking of his time.
His work in mathematics embraced the beginnings of calculus, and he also conceived of analytic geometry, also known as coordinate geometry, which uses graphs and algebra to study geometry, and is still taught today.
Isaac Beeckman (1588-1637)
Descartes met Beeckman, a Dutch philosopher and scientist, in 1618 and through their conversations, was inspired to do more work on mathematics and physics. Beeckman was a highly educated man, and was rector at various Dutch universities. He and Descartes fell out in later years, when there was a dispute over whether or not Beeckman had helped Descartes formulate some of his theories.
1596 René Descartes is born in La Haye, near Tours, in France.
1601-1614 René attends Jesuit college, in Anjou, where his teacher tells him to take more bed rest.
1616 Descartes is made doctor of law at University of Poitiers.
1618 He joins the mercenary army in Holland.
1619 He goes to Germany and has a dream about a system of science based on mathematics.
1622 Descartes returns to France, but continues to travel in Europe for several years.
1628 He says that certainty should be the only basis for human knowledge. Descartes moves to Holland, where he stays until 1649.
1634 On the verge of publishing his book, The World, he learns of Galileo's persecution by the Catholic Church for Copernicanism and decides not to publish.
1641 His book, Meditations on First Philosophy, is published.
1642 More publications follow.
1643 His philosophy is condemned by the head of the University of Utrecht. Interestingly, a ban on the teachings of Descartes at the university was only lifted in 2005.
1644 Descartes publishes The Principles of Philosophy.
1649 He is invited to Stockholm to teach Queen Christina of Sweden about philosophy.
1650 René Descartes dies in Sweden of pneumonia. His remains are now buried in Paris.
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