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WorksheetsN5 Descartes
Total questions: 15
Worksheet time: 9mins
What does Descartes realise about many of his strongly held beliefs at the beginning of the Meditations?
They are based on his intuition.
They are not based on anything.
They are based on reason.
They are based on experience.
P1: My senses have deceived me in the past.
P2: It is wise not to have complete trust in something that has previously deceived you.
C: ......................................................................................................
Descartes' senses argument targets...
a priori knowledge
rationalism
What examples does Descartes give to support his senses argument?
Things that sound different to how we imagined.
Things that appear to be a different colour.
Things that are far away or very small.
Things that turn out to be completely different.
P1: ........................................................................................................................
P2: If there are no certain signs that distinguish my waking life from being asleep and dreaming, then it is possible that I am not awake right now but rather dreaming I am awake.
C: It is possible that I am not awake right now but rather dreaming I am awake.
There are certain signs that distinguish my waking life from being asleep and dreaming.
There are no certain signs that distinguish my waking life from being asleep and dreaming.
There is a high chance that my waking life is distinct from dreaming of being awake.
It is possible that I cannot tell right now that I am dreaming I am awake.
Descartes talks of sitting by the fire holding a piece of paper. What is the point of this?
He can't be sure that God isn't deceiving him into thinking he's sitting by the fire.
The senses initially seem to be reliable for things that are very obvious.
The senses are reliable in cases like this.
He sometimes thinks he is sitting by the fire when in fact he is in bed, dreaming that he is awake.
If we can have experiences in dreams of seeing things that are not there in reality, then...
perhaps I am being deceived into thinking my dreams are really experiences of the external world.
perhaps I am being systematically deceived by a powerful being.
perhaps I can't fully trust my senses.
perhaps all supposed experiences of the external world are, similarly, a product of the mind.
Which type of knowledge survives the dreaming argument?
a priori
a posteriori
How does Descartes begin to doubt a priori knowledge?
(a)
What does Descartes conclude at the end of the Deceiving God argument?
A posteriori knowledge is undermined by the possibility that God might be deceiving him.
The foundations for all his knowledge are undermined by the possibility that God might be deceiving him.
Most of his knowledge are undermined by the possibility that God might be deceiving him,
A priori knowledge is undermined by the possibility that God might be deceiving him.
Why does Descartes introduce the evil demon?
(Select all that apply)
As a device to help him treat seriously the idea that the external world might be a complete illusion.
As a device to help himself doubt all his former beliefs.
As a device to remind him to doubt a priori knowledge.
As a real possibility that shows that knowledge is unattainable.
In Meditation 2, because he now knows nothing for sure, now considers...
that he is being systematically deceived.
that he is dreaming.
that he may not even exist.
that the external world doesn't exist.
What could an evil demon NOT do?
Fool everybody into believing they existed.
Fool nothing into believing it existed.
Fool something into believing it existed.
Fool something into believing it didn't exist.
Why did Descartes conclude 'I am, I exist'?
Because if he is doubting that he exists, then he is thinking.
Because thinking requires an 'I' to do the thinking.
Because an evil demon could not fool nothing into believing that it existed.
Because he must exist if he is able to dream.
The 'method of doubt' aims to...
Establish a foundation for knowledge that is beyond doubt.
Undermine rationalism
Examine the foundations of all his knowledge.
Examine individual beliefs.
