PSYC 305 Chapter Notes - Chapter 7: Baruch Spinoza, Pantheism, Empirical Evidence
Document Summary
Rationalism: ren descartes and others answered the challenge of montaigne"s skepticism through rationalism (from the latin ratio meaning to reason), rationalism as a philosophical movement may be differentiated from empiricism in three way: Rationalists most often postulate an active mind that acts upon incoming sensory information. Rationalists emphasize deductive arguments, (i. e. using logic to demonstrate that the premises of an argument provide definitive grounds for the conclusion): Empiricists more often use inductive arguments to demonstrate that the conclusion is more likely than not, given the premises. Ren descartes: applied his mathematical approach to philosophy in his development of a rational system, descartes imported his mathematical method as he pushed the limits of his ability to doubt, the four parts of his method: Never accept anything as true unless it is: Divide all difficulties into as many parts as possible. Start with the easiest and simplest elements and then proceed to the complex.