René Descartes Quiz

What is the Latin phrase that René Descartes is known for, which translates to "I think, therefore I am"?

• Cogito ergo sum

• Ego cogito, ergo sum

• Sum ergo cogito

• Cogito, sum ergo

In which work does René Descartes first present the argument usually summarized as "cogito ergo sum"?

• Meditations on First Philosophy

• Principia Philosophiae

• De Civitate Dei

• Discourse on Method

What was Descartes' main reason for doubting all that could be doubted?

• To prove the existence of God

• To establish a new political system

• To find an indubitable foundation for knowledge

• To refute the ideas of Saint Augustine

According to Descartes, what is the one thing that cannot be doubted even in the act of doubting?

• The existence of the external world

• The existence of God

• The existence of other minds

• The existence of one's own existence

Which philosopher's ideas does the text mention as anticipating modern refutations of Descartes' cogito ergo sum?

• Plato

• Aristotle

• Saint Augustine

• Spinoza

According to the text, what is the general rule that the author takes as true?

• Only things that are difficult to understand are true.

• Things that we conceive very clearly and distinctly are true.

• All things that exist are a result of our own perfection.

• Perfection is derived from the senses.

What did the author infer about the existence of something more perfect than himself?

• It could only come from something less perfect than himself.

• It must come from some nature which was in fact more perfect.

• It was a result of his own imagination.

• It was derived from the senses.

What conclusion does the author reach about the idea of a being more perfect than himself?

• It was an idea that he could derive from himself.

• It was an idea that must have been put into him by a less perfect being.

• It was an idea that must have been put into him by a nature truly more perfect than his.

• It was an idea that he could derive from the senses.

What does the author claim about the certainty of the existence of God compared to geometrical demonstrations?

• It is less certain than any geometrical demonstration.

• It is as certain as any geometrical demonstration.

• It is only certain when derived from the senses.

• It is not certain at all.

What does the author suggest about the ideas of God that have not been first in the senses?

• They are the most certain ideas we can have.

• They are derived from geometrical demonstrations.

• They are less certain than those that have been in the senses.

• They are clear and distinct ideas that must be true.