Topic:
In Meditation 2, Descartes rejects the view that he is a combination of body and soul. Write an essay in which you:-
a. Explain what he means by the body.
b. Explain what he means by the soul.
c. Explain how he reaches the conclusion that he should reject the view that he is a body together with a soul.
d. Explain what Descartes understands as ‘thinking’, including why he regards such states as seeing and imagining as ‘thinking’.
e. Explain the alternative conception of himself that he thinks he should accept instead of the view that he is a body plus a soul.
f. Explain why he thinks this alternative conception better meets the standards set in the Meditations for the beliefs Descartes is allowed to accept. In doing this make clear how his conception of ‘thinking’ (which you explained in response to [d.] above) contributes to this alternative conception of himself, and to fulfilling the standards set in the Meditations for the beliefs Descartes is allowed to accept
