Descartes: An Analytical and Historical Introduction

by Georges Dicker

A solid grasp of the main themes and arguments of the seventeenth century philosopher Rene Descartes is an essential tool towards understanding modern thought, and a necessary entree to the work of the empiricists and Immanuel Kant, and to the study of contemporary epistemology and philosophy
of mind. Clear and accessible, this new book serves as an introduction to Descartes's ideas for undergraduates and as a sophisticated companion to his Meditations for more advanced readers. After a thorough discussion of the main themes and arguments of the Meditations , the historical background of
the work, and its critical reception, the author offers his own reflections on Cartesian doubt, the cogito , the causal and ontological proofs of God's existence, the Cartesian circle, Cartesian dualism, and Descartes' views of the material world. The commentary includes and cross-references the
full text of Meditations I, II , and V , and most of Meditations III and VI , employing John Cottingham's highly-praised translation.

Genres: Philosophy, History, Nonfiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published February 4, 1992

Reviews

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first used this book in graduate school and determined at the time that I would get my own copy, which I never did, as I headed off into ministry. Finally a couple of years ago, I saw an unmarked copy for only $8 in a used book store and snatched it up. I'm so glad I did, because it has been very helpful in teaching the Descartes section in my philosophy class at Creighton this semester.

Dicker gives a thorough commentary on the Meditations in First Philosophy, reconstructing the arguments of Descartes and testing them to see if they work. He isn't only interested in them for historical reasons, but considers what our present day take on them can and should be. This is a valuable for resource for anyone wanting to understand Descartes better.

[Alessandro Veneri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thorough analysis of Descartes's core philosophy, by inspecting the main themes of his Meditations. I have read the first edition which is quite old now (published in 1993), try to get the Second Ed. if you can, as there may be new elements to the analysis. Dicker is a master in deconstructing Descartes's thought, actualise it into contemporary philosophical language and criticising it.

Here you can find a full review of the book (too long to be posted here!)
http://kumarproject.com/portfolio/des...