In the book, Meditations on First Philosophy by Descartes, Descartes begins by stating that he has believed many falsehoods that had been based on the unreliable, empirical foundations that characterize medieval science. Through Descartes’ use of skepticism, he seeks to create a new, lasting, unshakeable science in which absolute certainty can be achieved. Descartes calls into doubt everything that he has previously believed, and he raises and addresses many skeptical arguments in order to demonstrate that the mind is the inherent source of true scientific knowledge rather than the senses. Descartes emphasizes that all knowledge must be based on clear and distinct perceptions, and that truth is not guaranteed unless it is proven through these clear and distinct perceptions. He hypothesizes that if an idea is clearly and distinctively perceived by the natural light, then the belief becomes irresistible due to the indisputable nature …show more content…
Descartes’ doubt is methodical in that he questions the foundations of his beliefs and uses this doubt in order to discover knowledge that is entirely certain through perceptions that simply cannot be doubted. He devises the Method of Doubt in which he proposes a belief, negates it, and evaluates the possibility of the negation. In the book, Descartes focuses on the reliability of the senses, putting forth the belief that the senses are reliable, proposing the negation that the senses are unreliable, then evaluating the possibility of this negation. If the negation is impossible, then the belief is certain, and if the negation is possible, then the belief is suspended. Since medieval science is rooted in the reliability of the senses, and the argument that the senses are reliable does not