A dream within a dream 1. Good morning today I will be talking about the poem a dream within a dream written by Edgar Allen Poe‚ first published in 1827. The poem is a two stanza lyric poem. The poet asks himself if a person can determine the difference between reality and fantasy by asking " is all that we see or seem but a dream within a dream". The poet is reflecting his feelings of the time and exaggerating his confusion as he is watching the important things in his life slip away as if they
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ARGUMENTS VS EXPLANATIONS EXPLANATIONS An explanation is a group of statements that try to show how or why something is or will be the case. Specifically‚ we use an explanation when we try to explain what makes a claim true. The event or the phenomenon in question is usually accepted as a matter of fact. Explanations do NOT prove why something is the case. Every explanation is composed of two parts: The explanandum (a statement that describes the event that is supposed to be explained)‚ and
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Based upon the belief that the mind and body are two separate entities‚ philosophers‚ such as Rene Descartes‚ support the Substance Dualism theory of mind‚ arguing that the mind‚ which is a thinking entity‚ may exist without the body‚ which is a physical extension‚ because it is its own individual substance of matter. In Descartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy‚ he puts all concepts of previous certainty into question‚ intentionally leaving the reader with skepticism towards the concept of knowledge
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Descartes wrote Meditation One with the intention of questioning and challenging the beliefs he holds‚ especially of there being a supreme God‚ in order for these beliefs to become stronger. The first meditation starts with him recalling the false opinions he had in the past. He seeks to doubt and reevaluate these things‚ and he also wants to directly attack the foundations that held up his beliefs. He then continues by talking about the senses which may sometimes be deceptive. There are still things
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In academic writing‚ an argument is usually a main idea‚ often called a “claim” or “thesis statement‚” backed up with evidence that supports the idea. In most college papers‚ one needs to make some sort of claim and use evidence to support it. One’s ability to do this will separate a good paper from other papers. We use argument in everyday life to convince somebody of my ideas or opinion‚ convince our teachers we deserve a better grade. A better argument is accomplished if no emotion is involved
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Descartes’ sixth meditation in Meditation on First Philosophy sets out to prove the existence of material objects through the faculties of imagination and senses. To clarify‚ a faculty is the inherent power of the mind and body; thereupon‚ clear and distinct ideas are created. Clear and distinct ideas‚ however‚ are valid through pure understanding or the intellect. The intellect is a critical property of truth that any faulty and differentiate from all other faulty. As a result of confirming his
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meditation one‚ Descartes believes that sciences require that the truth is absolutely certain and because of this he chooses to reject any all beliefs that have even a slight possibility of doubt. But since all beliefs can’t be proved certain‚ then all of the beliefs he has are doubtful and deceiving. And because his senses tell him this false belief is true‚ his senses are also an illusion. To simplify: all of Descartes’ beliefs and senses are illusions that an “evil genius” made up. Descartes feels like
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DIVISIBILITY ARGUMENT This paper will discuss the dualism’s Divisibility Argument. This argument relies on Leibniz’s Law and uses a different property to prove the distinctness of brain states of mental states. Mary‚ who is a materialist‚ presents several objections to that argument. Her main objection corresponds to the first/third-person approach. She believes that Dave presents that argument only from the first-person approach‚ which is introspection‚ and totally disregards the third-person
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First‚ I will discuss the views of Descartes’ philosophy about knowledge. In his writing‚ Mediations on First Philosophy‚ Descartes claims that knowledge originates from reasoning‚ thinking. He begins the argument by expressing that even though the knowledge he has obtained was through the use of his senses‚ he is unable to have faith in them because they are deceivable. “Whatever I have accepted until now as most true has come to me through my senses. But occasionally I have found that they have
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Locke and Rene Descartes were two of the most influential philosophers of the 17th century. The two of them both sought answers to aid them in understanding things about knowledge‚ such as how we attain it and what exactly it is‚ and they also had differing opinions about whether or not there was absolute certainty in knowledge. Although it can be said that the philosophies of Locke and Descartes were different‚ I believe that they have a few things in common. Both Locke and Descartes definitions
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