Descartes: "Cogito ergo sum." Do you agree? Give reasons for and against.?

Answer 1

I think, therefore I am. To be completely fair, I think Descartes was an idiot, therefore he was. Seriously though, your physical presence is what makes you exist, not whether you can acknowledge your own existence. Consider the pebble: does the pebble exist if it doesnt realise it exists? Does it exist if you don't believe it exists? The answer is yes, because it is physical matter taking up space in the universe.

Another example of Descartes' idiocy is his so called "proof of the existence of God", when he claims that since God is completely good, evil cannot exist. Since God is supremely intelligent and supremely powerful and created myself and everything else, and these attributes cannot have come from myself, God necessarily must exist.

Descartes necessarily must have been barking mad.

Answer 2

it depends indeed on how you understand his statement. actually, Descartes said "Je pense, donc je suis." (maybe you knew that he was french...) which both mean "I think, therefore I am." most people think that he meant "I think, therefore I exist.", but that's actually not what he said!

since consciousness arises from discovering a difference between the outside world and your own body (to say it simple), that means as soon as you are seeing yourself as something separated from the outside, you will automatically start thinking, knowing you are and trying to actively do everything to remain in a state of being.
(to give at least a little more insight: all senses give information to the brain every second. if you see somebody burning his hand on a stove and then burn your own hand (for whatever reason), your brain will experience the PAIN as a difference and make its conclusions about it. so even when you just smell something (flowers, smoke...), you will know that you are, because otherwise your brain would not have this information and would not tell you: "there's fire somewhere, watch out!"...)

you can make that much more complicated by considering the development of the human brain (which discovers the mentionned difference and is referred to as the unconscious...) from a former ape's brain till now or by stating that animals don't think and still are, but Descartes never said "Animals don't think, therefore they are not."!
so what's the point? "I think, but I am not."??
actually there is a quote that says: "Some people would rather die than start thinking - and they do!", which makes you see Descartes' quote from a different point of view again....

however, it was just a simple and true conclusion he expressed.
things don't always have to be made more complicated to make more sense. it's the same with diets: you could simply say: "burn more calories than you take in, and you will loose weight." - but you will not make any money with that...

after all, err is human, so even if he is wrong, he still IS a human being who at least thought he was right....

Answer 3

Absolutely... the whole principle behind the phrase is that all else could be imagined or otherwise falsely perceived (think "The Matrix"), but the very process of thinking proves that you exist.

Think about it - we live in an era that fully proves this thought. Headphones and I-pods allow us to perceive that there is a band playing right in our ears; VR goggles even deceive your sense of sight and allow you to see yourself in a place where you are not. Household aerosol sprays can even make a trip to the bathroom smell like you are entering a rose garden.

All of your senses can be deceived into perceiving false realities. Tools so easily deceived are therefore completely unreliable and cannot be trusted to prove one's existence. The only real proof that you have of your autonomous existence - the only proof you have that you are not simply a machine that is plugged into a VR machine - is your ability to think, to have your own ideas about and perceptions of the things that you experience. The little running commentary that you have in your head, the little editorials that you make about your day-to-day experiences -- this is the only way to truly prove that you exist as an independent entity.

Answer 4

It assumes that the world is rational, and there is no reason that it is. Also, an interesting joke.

Descartes walks into a bar.
"I'd like a drink, barman"

Barman: "Will you have the usual Mr. Descartes?"
Descartes: "I think not"
descartes then disappears

Answer 5

This has already been asked in its English equivalent. Congratulations on using the Latin!

I prefer to say "I was created, therefore I am" but I've lucked out finding a Latin translation - anyone who can help out, please do!

Answer 6

I prefer Dorypandas version. ' I think I am, therefore I may be.'

Answer 7

(Latin: "I am thinking, therefore I exist",

for those who dont know what shes on about


oh and im replying there i exist

Answer 8

Not really...many organisms cannot think...but they still exist!

Answer 9

I don't think so therefore I am not....aaaaaarrrrrghhhhhhhhh