Philosophy Do We Have Innate Ideas Essay - 1491 Words

Do we have innate ideas? Offer your view with reference to the work of Descartes and Locke I understand the concept of innate ideas alone means ideas that presents our mind at birth. Descartes and Locke both have their own views about innate ideas and their arguments are completely different to each other and the question remain to the human knowledge. Do innate ideas really exist? Descartes does not put experiences to his philosophy like the other philosophers, Bacon and Hobbes. He believes that we have some innate ideas that self, identity, substance and God are in us as we are born â€Å"most part on the truths contained in the mind†. He proposed an observations from the wax. Whatever he heats or cools the wax, it would still remain the same†¦show more content†¦Reflection is telling us the operation of mind such as includes perception, thinking, doubting, believing, reasoning, knowing, willing. After reading the analysis of innate ideas of the two philosophers. I tend to agree with Locke’s argument that there is no such innate ideas. First, Descartes does not proving enough about how can we born with innate ideas? This major flaw eventually get to Locke’s tension and give us a strong evident of the young children should aware of truth if they have innate ideas in them. Second, I believe in Locke’s criticism about ideas only gain through our experiences and situations. Thus the more experience we have, the vivid picture about our external world we can perceived. It is sometimes said that Kants philosophy represents a sort of synthesis or reconciliation of empiricism and rationalism. How accurate do you think this way of characterizing Kant is? Be sure to display your knowledge of Kants philosophy. Kant credited both empiricism and rationalism movements. He believes that they both contributed to human’s knowledge and should not reject neither one of them. So, he keeps some parts of those principles and defines empiricism a posteriori knowledge and rationalism as a priori knowledge. His goal is to explain and then justify the possibility of scientific knowledge. Empiricism is a belief that humans being come to theShow MoreRelatedRene Descartes s Philosophy And The Science Of Philosophy1114 Words   |  5 PagesRene Descartes was a rationalist who is considered the father of modern philosophy, primarily because his ideas departed from current understanding in the early 17th century, which was more feeling based (Biography.com). He was born on March 31, 1956, in France and was a very educated man. His mother sent him to a boarding school which was considered college at an early age of 8. Additionally, by the age of 22 he had obtained his degree as a lawyer. To further this, he believed that all truths wereRead MoreInnate Ideas Essay653 Words   |  3 PagesInnate Ideas Throughout the passage of time, philosophers have written and discussed many topics in philosophy. Sometimes, these philosophers agree on ideas or sometimes they make their own assumptions. There are two philosophers who had different ideas concerning where innate ideas come from and how we get these types of ideas. Rene Descartes and John Locke were these two philosophers with the opposing argument on innate ideas. The place where Descartes discusses his views were in the MeditationsRead MoreRationalism And Rationalism788 Words   |  4 PagesPrompt 3 Philosophy can be divided into Metaphysics and epistemology. Metaphysics is concerned with what is to be? While epistemology is concerned with concrete knowledge and with â€Å"what is knowledge†? In other words, what can be known, how it came to be known, and the source of knowledge is epistemology. 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At the other end of the spectrum, empiricism claims that knowledge is gained largely by experience, observation, and sensory perception. Renà © Descartes and John Locke, both seventeenth century philosophers, are often seen as two of the first early modern philosophers. Both Descartes and Locke attempt to find answers to the same questions in metaphysics and epistemology; among these: What is knowledge? Is there certainty in knowledge? What roles do theRead More Weaknesses of Descartes Arguments Essays1641 Words   |  7 PagesDescartes philosophy is that he wanted to reconcile scientific and religious views, which is wrong since the two maintain completely different foundational beliefs and they should exist exclusively- without relation to the other.   Thirdly, he believed that the mind was the Self and the Soul, failing to recognize that humans have bodies and the outside world exists, and through which we gain our knowledgeable. Lastly, Descartes argues that ideas are all innate while they actually are not- we gain knowledgeRead MoreEssay John Locke943 Words   |  4 PagesLocke’s point that all huma ns are born as Tabula Rasa, in order to gain basic understanding of where Locke begins his theory. Second, I discuss how Locke argues how we obtain knowledge, empiricism and representationalism, and knowledge about the work varies between strong and weak inferences. Third, I will provide counter examples to Locke’s ideas, and will explain why these counter examples work for Locke’s theories provided. Finally, I address some of the ways that Locke might respond to my objectionsRead MoreDescartes Meditations On First Philosophy1712 Words   |  7 PagesDescartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy (1641) contains six Meditations. In the first two of these Descartes addresses doubt and certainty. By the end of the second Meditation Descartes establishes the possibility of certainty by concluding that he is a â€Å"thinking thing† and that this is beyond doubt. Having established the possibility of certainty, Descartes attempts to prove the existence of God. T he argument he presents in the Third Meditation for the existence of God has been nicknamed theRead MoreEmpiricism Vs. Positivist Theory Of Knowledge1053 Words   |  5 PagesEpistemology is the branch of philosophy that evaluates the acquisition, limitations, and origins of human knowledge. One of the theories found in epistemology is the theory of empiricism. Empiricism is the belief that knowledge is gained through experience, that there is no such thing as â€Å"innate knowledge,† or knowledge that one is born with. Empiricism stands in stark contrast to the rationalist theory, the belief that humans possess innate knowledge, and that one can have knowledge, without sensoryRead MoreInnate Ideas Essay1444 Words   |  6 Pagesefforts to find truth, Descartes used only his logic to identify his existence. He also proved that there is some type of knowledge that we are born with. â€Å"Some of our ideas seem to be â€Å"born with me,† some â€Å"invented† by me, whereas others â€Å"come from without† (Descartes, 2008, p. 211). Which means Descartes believed that we enter this world with some innate ideas that overtime helps us to develop understanding of our sense (invented by me) and through our experiences (comes from without). Descartes