Comparison Of Descartes Theory Of Substance Dualism

In Descartes’ Meditations he attempts to find ultimate truth. In doing so, he makes claims that are actively discussed among modern day philosophers and, in the case of substance dualism, neuroscientists. Descartes’ theory of substance dualism is that the mind and body are separate substances. He defines the mind as a thinking, non-extended thing (Descartes 114) and the body as a non-thinking, extended thing (Descartes 115). Since the two materials described have different properties, they cannot be considered the same substance by Descartes’ reasoning, thus resulting in substance dualism. Despite being initially appealing, this theory is very dissatisfactory and has many flaws, especially when considered in the context of the correspondences between Descartes and Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia and Spinoza’s monist argument presented in Ethics. These counter-arguments and Descartes’ leaps in logic are enough to contest the theory of

In a vacuum, it might be acceptable to commit to the idea of dualism because having two categories (thinking things and material things) of substances is not too eccentric, especially when on a journey to determine ultimate truth. However, when considering daily activities and actual examples it is almost impossible to defend substance dualism since the controversy stems from a lack of communication between the two substances. Monism is a viable alternative to dualism, because it eliminates the barrier of substance interaction, since God is the only substance. But the strength to this theory is also its weakness because it is hard to conceive the idea that everything is God, whether it is extended or thinking. In conclusion, I cannot support Descartes’ theory of substance dualism as presented in the