Descartes Mind And Matter Dualism Analysis

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Descartes’ mind/matter dualism suggests that to the mind is distinct to matter. Descartes believes the mind is immaterial since it cannot be extended and does not take up space. Matter is the body that is material, spatial and can be extended. Since the material mind and the immaterial body are two distinct things, they are able to exist apart from one another and do not rely on each other. Descartes argument is because of the material body and immaterial mind being recognizably different therefore the material body does not have an effect on the mind. Because of this, differences in the bodies of females and males do not connect to or bring about differences of the male and female mind. If you are able to think and form judgment and reason then you are a human being with a mind. Basically if you can think, you exist. Your mind develops thoughts and it is what makes who you are. Your body is just a physical aspect. In “Competing Cosmologies”, overcoming ancient claims proposes that women were inferior to men based on temperament making them recognizably different from men. Women were known to have less heat than men. This was due to the four-element theory that shows the differences between women and men by fire, water, air and earth. Women had the sexual temperament of being feminine because their bodies were cold and wet. Men had more fire in their bodies therefore that makes them superior over women. Fire (hot) and Air (dry) defined …show more content…
In the correspondence between her and Descartes, Princess Elizabeth objects by thinking it is absurd of how mind and body cannot be in contact. It does not make sense to her that if they cannot be in contact then it means they cannot interact with one another. She believes that the mind cannot function separately from the body. Descartes provides an example of the moon and oceanic tides but Princess Elizabeth finds it irrelevant because it is a material

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