Descartes' Dream Scenario

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, essentially, Descartes' dream scenario proposes that the reliability of our senses is fallible; the so called "brain in a vat" scenario is really just a contemporary illustration of Descartes' dream scenario. The author points out that these thought experiments can lead to a tremendous amount of intellectual power because people are suddenly afforded the realization that they might very well have the choice to accept or reject the very world around them. The paper relates that the ultimate goal of Descartes in this experiment in thought is an attempt to remove any beliefs that cannot be proven.

From the Paper:

"These ideas force us to acknowledge the fallibility of our senses. Not only is this extremely difficult on a personal level as one sitting and trying to remove the belief that all of the things around us, which we likely have coveted and acquired through some effort and therefore are probably quite attached to them, as well as our own position within these things, but the greater implications of this idea are quite devastating intellectually. Our scientific system of empirical thought is based on observation. This includes the entire classification of the objects and creatures around us as well as the physical principles that rule their behaviors and place in this world."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Blackburn, Simon. Think. Oxford: Oxford Paperbacks Pub., 2001.

More papers on Descartes' Dream Scenario:

• Essay # 39759 : "Descartes and Dreaming"
• Analytical Essay # 136323 : "Is Life Just a Dream?"
• Essay # 25570 : "Descartes' "First Meditation"

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