Discourse on Method Essay example - 3627 Words

Discourse on Method Heuresis (or invention) comprises, as Richard Lanham notes, the first of the five traditional parts of rhetorical theory, concerned with the finding and elaboration of arguments (1991: 91). In Aristotles Rhetoric the category of heuresis included the kinds of proof available to the rhetorician, lists of valid and invalid topoi, as well as the various commonplaces the rhetorician might touch upon - loci or stereotypical themes and observations (time flies) appropriate to a given occasion (Lanham 1991: 166-170). In a more contemporary sense heuretic is defined by the OED as the branch of logic which treats of the art of discovery or invention. Both senses of this word, along with its more familiar cognate†¦show more content†¦Ulmers book presents itself, in part, as a heuristic device for enabling such new forms of research and text production from the inventio provided by Jacques Derrida. In The Other Heading, reflecting on contemporary Europe, Derrida repeats a fundamental question posed by Paul Valery in 1939 in the wake of fascism: What are you going to do? What are you going to do today? (1992: 18, cited in Ulmer 84). Ulmer sees his work as a response, in 1992, to this call for invention. Ulmers text also presents itself as providing a method for the contemporary paradigm (12) of poststructuralism comparable to the method Descartes provided for an emergent scientific rationalism. He is quick, however, to qualify this project for any attempt at a postmodernist method is contradictory (an impossible possibility) (25). In one of the most suggestive sections of work, the initial chapter contends that all of the manifestos of the avant-garde, belong to the tradition of the discourse on method (8), and provides an analysis of the common elements comprising such discourses. They are representable for mnemonic reference by the acronym CATTt (8). C = Contrast (opposition, inversion, differentiation) A = Analogy (figuration, displacement) T = Theory (repetition, literalization) T = Target (application, purpose) t = Tale (secondary elaboration, representability) (8) Thus Descartes discourse on methodShow MoreRelatedReflection on Discourse on the Method952 Words   |  4 PagesDescartes is one of the most important western philosophers of the past few centuries. His greatest and most famous work is Discourse on the Method. In this book Descartes questions his own existence, and knowledge that he obtained from different sources. Main arguments of the book are well developed by a logical pattern and supported by examples. However, closely investigating this work, readers can come across many controversies and disputations. Being a well educated person, Descartes finds hisRead MoreDescartes Discourse on Method931 Words   |  4 PagesUnderstanding Descartes Method of Doubt Clear your mind, if you will, of everything you have ever seen or known to be true. To begin understanding Rene Descartes method of doubt, you need to suspend all prejudice and prior judgments and start with a clean slate for the purpose of discovering some ultimate truth on which to base all thought. (Kolak, Pg.225). Discouraged with much skepticism from his own beliefs, Descartes was embarrassed of his own ignorance. He set out to try and accomplishRead MoreDescartes Essay example757 Words   |  4 Pagesprominent Renaissance philosopher conquered the world of uncertainty in a work written in the 17th century. Mr. Descartes, Discourse on Method, quelled the skeptics with the assertion, I think, therefore I am. Most important to Descartes, however, was the method for which he was able to arrive at this axiom. The philosopher, Descartes, hoped to establish a universal method, a tremendous goal, if achieved. The Renaissance era cultivated rational thought, science, and mathematics as the eminentRead MoreDiscourse on Descartes Skeptical Method1672 Words   |  7 PagesSebastian Gumina Paper Topic #1 Descartes’ Skeptical Method Descartes’ method offers definitive conclusions on certain topics, (his existence, the existence of God)but his reasoning is not without error. He uses three arguments to prove existence (His and God’s) that attempt to solidify his conclusions. For his method to function seamlessly, Descartes needs to be consistent in his use of the method, that is, he must continue to doubt and challenge thoughts that originate in his ownRead MoreEssay on Descartes Failure4852 Words   |  20 Pagesmeditations in my attempt to show that, in his skepticism of the sources of knowledge, he fails to follow the rules he has set out in the Discourse on Method. First I claim that Descartes fails to draw the distinction between pure sensation and inference, which make up what he calls sensation, and then consider the consequences of this failure to follow his method. Second, I will show that in his treatment of thinking Descartes fails to distinguish between active and passive thinking . AlthoughRead MoreAnalysis Of Rene Descartes s The Descartes 2020 Words   |  9 Pagesotherworldly questions. We ll talk about what happens to his quest for information in no time, yet for the time being, we should investigate the framework he thought of to manage his request of the Cartesian Method Discourse on Method introduces the four statutes that describe the Cartesian Method: ïÆ'Ëœ Never acknowledge anything as genuine anything that can be questioned. Indeed, even a remote uncertainty is adequate to require that a conviction or statement be inspected. ïÆ'Ëœ Separate thoughts/convictionsRead MoreDescartes s Discourse On Method890 Words   |  4 Pages In his Discourse on Method, Rene Descartes asserts that all human beings are equal in their ability to reason and that any differences in opinion are not a result of a difference in ability to reason, but in the application of the reasoning. Descartes begins his argument for this claim by stating that rational thought and reason is what separates humans from animals, and that if all people have this ability to reason, then that must be the distinguishing feature of humanity. He goes on to explainRead MoreDescartes Discourse On Method Summary1337 Words   |  6 PagesThe mythical phoenix is born in the ashes of its mother once she has been consumed in flame, becoming stronger than she ever was. In Discourse on Method, Descartes hopes to destroy the conventional understanding of philosophy that has been followed throughout the ages, and in doing so establish his own philosophy as the new convention in the ashes of the old philosophy. In this paper, I will present Descartes’ fin dings of instability in philosophy and distaste for the way people learn as his motivationRead MoreThe Discourse On Method A Foundationalist One2142 Words   |  9 Pages(1) In what sense is Descartes’ project in the Discourse on Method a foundationalist one? By Serena Lipscomb The 17th Century was a transmute turning point in the West; the scientific revolution would occur, freedom of the individual would become established whilst an old world-view would be rejected to favour a new, very different world-view which would innovate our existence. Foundationalism would be established as an important way of beginning new theories and experiments in rational as wellRead MoreThe Discourse On Method Part V1188 Words   |  5 PagesRene Descartes, in his meditation, â€Å"The discourse on Method Part V†, had argued that although we humans could build a machine, that could successfully imitate a monkey, we could not build one that could imitate a human being. Descartes, believed that machines have organs that they could use to answer questions. What I understood from this point, was that machines could only answer questions that the humans have programmed or prompted them to ask. However, if the machine has not been programmed to