Descartes False Ideas Compared To The Method Of Socrates

Descartes said, “Several years have now elapsed since I first became aware that I had accepted, even from my youth, many false opinions for true, and that consequently what I afterward based on such principles was highly doubtful.”(1) After analyzing my fellow classmates’ thoughts on Descartes’ first and second meditation, I came to the conclusion that Descartes no longer had faith in what he learned throughout his entire life. Descartes radicalized his mindset to purge himself of what he perceived to be weak principles. He had hoped to strengthen his resolve in his pursuit of a life without doubt. He believed that the only way he could remove all doubt from his life was through ridding himself of the false opinions from his youth and building a

Socrates’ method involved discussion, critical thinking, and questioning among other individuals to stimulate the creation of new ideas and perspectives. Descartes’ method involved the removal of all knowledge he doubted and the continuous pursuit of something he knew was entirely true. The concept of Descartes’ method would backfire immediately. His method required him to essentially remove any ideas he slightly doubted from his thought process and to start anew until he completely agreed with an idea. He did not believe anything he perceived to be true, which forced him to endlessly seek new knowledge to build a foundation