The role of the senses in knowledge from "summary" of Discourse on the Method and the Meditations by Rene Descartes
The senses play a crucial role in our acquisition of knowledge. It is through our senses that we come into contact with the external world and gather information about it. Our senses allow us to perceive the physical world around us and to make sense of it. Through sight, we see colors and shapes, through hearing, we perceive sounds, through touch, we feel textures and temperatures, through taste and smell, we experience flavors and scents. However, Descartes cautions that our senses are not infallible. They can sometimes deceive us, leading us to form false beliefs about the world. Descartes gives the example of a stick appearing bent when partially submerged in water, even though we know it to be straight. This shows that our senses can sometimes give us inaccurate information about the world. Desc...
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