I have missed these Honors blogs. I mentioned in Rachel's post how I also felt Descartes' Meditations to be the perfect starter for Honors Seminar, but I wanted to go on about it a little more, among other things. Descartes was truly an Honors student. He took some things that had previously been dealt with and wrestled through them himself. he was not satisfied with the easy answers he had gotten from others. He is truly taking on the persona of a seeker and wrestling through truth, suffering, in hopes to find something beautiful. He has shown a beautiful picture of the Spirit of Honors.
One of my weak points is Math- mostly because it is an absolute and no matter what 2+2 always = 3.... I mean 4. :) Anyway, my example makes more sense in regards with higher Math because of the fact that I am always asking "Why?" "Why does it have to be this way? "Because that's just the way it is." Doesn't sit right in my head. I think this is how Descartes feels as he wrestles through his points in his Meditations.
One can see his progressiveness throughout the writings- traveling from considering himself to not be a real thing all the way to his consideration of being a 'thinking thing", and so on.
To be honest, sometimes I just wanted him to spit it out- but, I know all to well about this wrestling thing. Sometimes you have to form the question in all kinds of ways to get an answer to take you somewhere else. He definitely progresses, thankfully.
Some of his thoughts are very "Enlightenment period-like." In my copy of the text there are several instances where I wrote "Matrix much?" in my notes. As we learned in class, many of the ideas that came to form things such as the Matrix came from this period. He also says some things that take me back into The Cave with Plato. I also found some things that reminded me of Aquinas and immovability. Ah! I have so many interesting things in this!
One conclusion he made that I'll highlight was that there must be some "malignant force" which is causing these doubts in his mind. In response he says something very powerful. "...let him deceive me as he may, he can never bring it about that I am nothing, so as long as I shall be conscious that I am something." WOW- how profound? The enemy can deceive, lie, and tell you all he wants that you are nothing- but as long as we hold fast to the truth we have in God's words and listen to what HE says about us, we can never be destroyed- perhaps struck down, but never destroyed.
One last thing to consider. In working with people in different faiths, or just people who want to argue, you will often hear the argument of "Nothing can ever be certain," "Everything is relative, there is no one way to God," 'Everyone has an idea of truth inside of them- and if everyone follows and peruses their idea of truth, they will be okay," blah, blah, blah.... This is one of the things that I can see Descartes is struggling through. Absolutism. Things like... If I consider my body, my movement, and and all things regarding myself as relative then I myself must be relative and therefore nothing... then how is it it that they can be perceived? If I can be perceived then, I must infact be something. Furthermore, if I am something then what kind of something am I? Because I can perceive myself I must be a perceiving or a thinking thing... you heard this exchange.... it's what I like to call the 'truth talk'- and I'll summarize it in this way: If everything is relative, nothing is an absolute. But by making that statement you have therefore made an absolute statement... so you have just voided your previous statement of there being nothing absolute by making an absolute.
PHEEEEW.
That's all for today kids. happy blogging. I love y'all a lot! I hope we get some good discussions going on this blog! Freshies- DON'T be overwhelmed- I promise we returning Sophomores were in the exact same place as you! :)
-Comment on Rachel's
I've taken many Christian Worldview classes during my high-school career and I think you about summed them all up in your last paragraph. With that in mind, I have always been fascinated by the way people speak in absolutes. Especially those who claim that there is no absolute truth. If there is no absolute truth, than why in the world would they say something so absolute? It's because they think all truth is relative. But, as you said Brittany, saying that all truth is relative, is an absolute. People that are so contradictory really amuse me.
ReplyDeleteGoing out on a huge limb here lol, but perhaps the reason DesCartes thoughts are so "traveling" is because he fully hasn't come to a conclusion on what God really means to him? Maybe he's arguing for God without fully comprehending what he's agruing for? Is it DesCartes' hope that people will doubt everything until they reach the only ground of certainy that they have (our own thoughts and minds possibly?) and then build from there upon things they find to be true until the reach the "ultimate" truth that is God? Or does DesCartes understand God more than we think, and he knows that if people doubt and question things enough (while creating a set of truths that they hold to be true) that they will eventually reach God? Is that plausible?
ReplyDeleteWhat you said about absolutes is so true! I had never thought of it that way, but that was Descartes whole point! If someone claims there is no God just because they can't experience Him with their senses, then they are putting their trust and defining truth simply by what their fallible senses tell them. However, God cannot be defined or contained by the senses of mere humans. Descartes really does struggle through the process of discovering who he truly is, not based on anything from his prior knowledge. This is impressive (if long-winded) and I'm really glad you were able to summarize it in your statement, "If everything is relative, nothing is an absolute." Those who claim God is not real because the Bible is relative or the way to salvation is narrow-minded are in fact imposing their version of truth (which in itself is relative and has not been proven); whereas the existence of God continues to manifest itself, regardless of the enemy's attempts to deceive and confuse.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your point about when Descartes says, "Everything is relative." Reading it reminded me of my Spanish teacher, last year, who used that exact phrase all too often. It drove me crazy that he could blow off ideas that were out of his comfort zone or politically incorrect so as not to 'offend' somebody. It's almost like saying, "I have an opinion that might be right, but your opinion is right for you" and leave it at that instead of searching for the absolute. If I believed with all my heart that I could fly and jumped off of a building, would I sprout wings because human flight seems logical to me? Unfortunately, no. A
ReplyDelete"Ask questions and question answers." -Mashburn
Brittany, you stole my thunder, but that's ok. I'll share. haha
ReplyDeleteBut I really like your incorporation of Plato's Cave. It is the same thinking. You have to doubt what you have always known, what you have always be taught; you have to doubt the beliefs of others that have been instilled in you and dare to look at the facts and then interpret it and develope your own beliefs and not rely on the wisdom of others. Systematically doubt and be made stronger. I like it.
Dear Tyler, I would say Descartes is doing just that.
ReplyDeleteKelsey, that was beautifully put.
Brittany, I missed this!! I enjoyed your post. It made me laugh, and nod my head. Just sayin :)
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