Free Critical Thinking On Empiricism Triumphs Over Rationalism

Descartes’ concept of logic revolves around the notion of the mind’s capability to determine true and false ideologies. Otherwise dubbed the method of doubt, Descartes argues that the mind is capable of breaking down norms and what people view to be common sense to determine their certainty. The Wax Experiment is an excellent illustration of Descartes’ reasoning. Apparently, a piece of wax in the philosopher’s hand possesses physical attributes including the sweet smell of nectar and a popping sound it emits when squeezed. Concurrently, the wax is real because he is touching it, and one can taste if he or she wants to discern the flavor. Thus, the mind recognizes the piece of wax to be real and of particular traits making it logical to associate the mentioned features with beeswax. Problem arises when Descartes exposes it to heat, where the wax loses all its physical attributes and becomes an unrecognizable melted and flexible piece. For that reason, Descartes argues that senses cannot give the true nature of any phenomena, and the mind is the only reliable preceptor of the same because it is capable of rational thought.
Hume’s empiricism manages to refute Descartes’ arguments on different grounds, but the problem of induction is a perfect fit for the same. According to Hume, the problem of induction entails the use of experiences to judge new phenomena before analyzing their traits. Sensory perceptions play a significant role in the philosopher’s argument where the mind stores the original information gathered and conjures certain expectations in similar circumstances. For instance, when a person eats bread, their senses gather information about the baked goods and create what Hume terms as experience. Consequently, any future foods that resemble breads ought to taste the same, and anything out of the original version becomes unacceptable. In view of Descartes’ wax experiment, the philosopher’s mind has conjured up fixed traits about wax based on his experiences. Therefore, wax is unacceptable because it cannot maintain its original features, leading to Descartes’ arguments that the senses are misleading, and only the mind provides the truth. Accordingly, in light of Hume’s empiricism, Descartes’ method has the problem of induction because his mind already creates expectations of how a piece of wax needs to behave and feel. However, as evidenced by the fact that wax can melt when exposed to heat, phenomena can change, and sensory perceptions can discern the same and send new knowledge for the mind to store. Hence, individuals ought to allow their minds to take up information as new experiences occur because phenomena change when exposed to different environments.
Thus said, empiricism triumphs over rationalism just because it encourages the use of the mind and senses to perceive new information as it emerges. Keeping Hume’s philosophy in mind, it will be illogical to make assumptions about everything and anything because if that were so, then humanity will be gods.

Bibliography

Hume, David. An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1993. Web. 2 February 2015. <http://18th.eserver.org/hume-enquiry.html>.