Objection to Descartes Mind/Body separation
In this paper, I will examine one of Descartes arguments in Meditation Six, namely his argument for conceivability. I will first restate his argument and outline how it works. I will then raise an objection to his argument in the form of the Clark Kent/Superman argument. The final part of this paper will include reasons why I think that Descartes’ proof is indefensible on the grounds of it being too reliant on arguments without concrete evidence to support them. Descartes uses God as the glue to hold his arguments together. It is the argument used by parents throughout the ages. “It is because I say it is” has only frustrated or angered children, much like Descartes’ reasoning must frustrate…show more content… He insists that because he can clearly and distinctly perceive the mind as a separate entity from the body, it must be correct because God provided him with this certainty of his thoughts (78). He has distinct ideas that make up his essence, namely that he is a thinking being. Second, he believes that his body is an extended thing, and not a thinking thing. Descartes continues in this vein by stating that “it is certain that I am distinct from my body, and can exist without it” (78). Descartes then begins to circle around the idea that although the mind and body are separate; they do interact. Descartes admits that his mind relies on the information from his body to keep him informed of other bodies around him. Descartes talks about bodily sensations alerting the mind to issues such as pain, for example, and the brain then decides on a response. If the mind is indeed separate from the body, why should we care about the senses or the body and the information it provides? Why do the body and mind seem to rely on each other? He says they interact by way of the brain but does not elaborate and goes further to state that “…countless experiments show this, none of which need be reviewed here”…show more content… I can clearly and distinctly perceive of Superman without his secret identity, just as I can perceive of Clark Kent with his glasses and meek manner. Per Descartes, Superman and Clark Kent could be considered as separate people, however, conceiving of them as independent of each other does not make it so. Clark Kent and Superman are the same person acting out different roles. One does not cease to exist when the other is visible to the viewer, and in fact, they cannot exist without the other. Superman needs his alter-ego Clark Kent to live on Earth and Clark Kent needs Superman when Superman’s skills are
