29 Philosopher Rene Descartes Interesting Fun Facts

(Last Updated On: April 16, 2021)

Rene Descartes is broadly thought to be the daddy of modern western philosophy. Philosopher Rene Descartes additionally performed a key function within the growth of arithmetic by being a pioneer of analytic geometry, a part from being a number one thinker.

Philosopher Rene Descartes

Descartes was born in minor French the Aristocracy. His mom died quickly after giving delivery to him, his father remarried and he was raised by his maternal grandmother.

Descartes was a licensed lawyer however he by no means practiced regulation. He additionally served as a soldier for 3 years and there’s a conspiracy concept in accordance with which he was a Catholic spy. Descartes by no means married however he had an affair and a toddler with a Dutch servant woman.

He had a well-known philosophical correspondence with Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia and he spent his final days within the service of Queen Christina of Sweden.

Know more in regards to the family, life, training, profession, well-known works, and the demise of French thinker and mathematician, Philosopher Rene Descartes from the following interesting blog.

1. There is a conspiracy concept in accordance with which Descartes was assassinated

By 1649, Rene Descartes had grown to be well-known all through Europe for being one of many continent’s biggest philosophers and scientists.

The identical year, Queen Christina of Sweden invited Descartes to her courtroom. She wished him to prepare a brand new scientific academy there and to tutor her in his concepts about love.

Descartes accepted her invitation and moved to Sweden. He most likely began together with his personal classes on December 19, 1649. Christina had a strict schedule and she or he made Descartes rise before 5:00 AM to come back to her citadel within the chilly.

Rene Descartes contracted pneumonia on February 1, 1650. He died in Stockholm on February 11 at the age of 53. According to Pierre Chanut, the French ambassador in Sweden in whose home Descartes was dwelling, the reason for demise was pneumonia.

However, German scholar Theodor Ebert believes that Descartes died not via natural causes however was poisoned by a Catholic priest. Supposedly, this was completed as Descartes’s radical concepts threatened an anticipated conversion to Catholicism by the monarch of protestant Sweden.

2. Philosopher Rene Descartes believed he had prophetic goals that led him to the trail to knowledge

On the night of November 10, 1619, whereas serving as a soldier of the Duke of Bavaria, Rene Descartes was stationed in Neuburg an der Donau. Like his military colleagues, he was lodged with a city inhabitant.

To escape the chilly, Descartes shut himself in a room with an oven. It was right here that he had his well-known three goals which, in accordance with him, supplied him with a mission in life.

Descartes believed {that a} divine spirit revealed to him a brand new philosophy via goals. He took from them the message that he ought to get down to reform all information. He believed that his achievements in philosophy and arithmetic have been a result of these goals.

The goals made him understand that every one truth has been linked with each other in order that discovering an elementary fact and continuing with logic would open the way in which to all science. This in flip made him discover his well-known primary fact: “I think, therefore I am”.

3. A Jesuit spy

There is a concept that Descartes was a Jesuit spy.

4. Philosopher Rene Descartes studied regulation

His father wished him to be a Lawyer. He studied regulation at the University of Poitiers incomes a regulation degree in 1616, although he by no means ended up working towards it.

Instead, at 22 years old, Descartes enlisted within the Dutch States Army as an alternative, the place he would examine navy engineering and later turned fascinated with the examination of math and physics.

5. Changed professional path

Descartes modified professional paths based mostly on a sequence of prophetic goals. On the night of November 10, 1619, Rene Descartes was stationed in Germany. To maintain heat, he shut himself in a room with a sizzling oven.

It was then when he had three goals, which in accordance with him, allowed him to discover his life’s objective. It is alleged that he took from them the message that he ought to get down to reform all information.

6. Philosopher Rene Descartes had an affair and a toddler with a Dutch servant woman

Rene Descartes by no means married. However he did had an intimate relationship with Helena Jans van der Strom, a Dutch servant woman working for the bookshop owner with whom Descartes was lodging in Amsterdam in 1634.

When Descartes moved from Amsterdam to Deventer, Helena went with him. The couple had a daughter named Francine Descartes on 19th July 1635. Though Francine was an illegitimate youngster, her baptism in Deventer on August 7, 1635, was recorded among the many legit births.

Descartes was planning to deliver his daughter to France to get her educated however Francine died of scarlet fever at the age of 5. American historian Russell Shorto postulates that the experience of fatherhood and shedding a toddler was a turning level in Descartes’ work.

It modified its focus from drugs to a quest for common solutions. Helena is the one girl with whom Descartes is thought to have had an intimate relationship. She in the end married an innkeeper named Jan Jansz van Wel with Descartes offering the 1000-guilder dowry for the marriage.

7. Dedication

His book “Passions of the Soul” was devoted to the Princess and was awarded the pension of the King of France when he died. He by no means acquired it.

8. Development of arithmetic

Besides being one of many main philosophers, he additionally performed a key function within the growth of arithmetic by being a pioneer of analytic geometry, combining algebra to resolve geometric issues.

9. Nickname

Nobody knew as him, Rene. Descartes glided by a nickname, and he launched himself as “Poitevin”. He additionally signed letters as “du Perron.” He even typically known as himself Lord of Perron” as a result of he had inherited a farm from his mom’s family in Poitou, in western France.

10. Influences

Descartes’s philosophy has really influenced a few of Hollywood’s most creative and celebrated tv, with delicate references in extremely philosophical exhibits akin to Lost, Westworld, and The Good Place.

11. Philosopher Rene Descartes claimed that animals can’t purpose and don’t really feel pain

Animal rights activists most certainly don’t love Descartes. Philosopher Rene Descartes claimed that animals can’t have a purpose and don’t really feel the ache. Descartes said that people are aware, have minds and souls, can be taught and have language, and subsequently solely people are deserving of compassion.

12. Religious views

His religious views are nonetheless debated, as he claimed to be a religious Catholic however was accused of harboring atheist beliefs.

13. He was mentored by Isaac Beeckman however he denied his effect

In 1618, at the age of 22, Descartes enlisted to struggle for the Protestant Dutch States Army in Breda underneath the command of Prince Maurice of Nassau. Though he was a soldier, the duties of Descartes have been oriented more towards engineering.

Also, it was at Breda that Philosopher Rene Descartes met one of many main mathematicians of the day, Isaac Beeckman. Beeckman acted as a mentor to Descartes conveying his scientific information to him. Together they labored on free fall, catenary, conic part, and fluid statics.

In 1619, Descartes wrote a brief treatise titled Compendium of Music and devoted it to Beeckman. Later, in 1628, Beeckman additionally launched Descartes to lots of Galileo’s concepts.

However, the 2 then turned concerned in a dispute. Descartes wrote a number of insulting letters to Beeckman during which, amongst different issues, he denied that Beeckman had ever helped him with a few of his mathematical discoveries. Despite this dispute, the 2 remained in touch till Beeckman’s demise in 1637.

14. Opponents

His philosophy on rationalism was opposed by the empiricist college of thought, based on the main philosophers Hobbes, Locke, Berkeley, and Hume.

15. 12 hours of sleep

Who says it’s important to get up early to achieve success? Descartes usually slept till midday, and often bought 12 hours of sleep a night. He said that sleep was nourishment for the mind and sometimes did work from his bed.

16. There is a concept that implies that Descartes was a spy

In 1619, Rene Descartes left Breda to affix the Catholic military of Maximilian I, Duke of Bavaria. It is to be famous, that regardless of being a Catholic, he had earlier served the Protestant Prince Maurice.

In 1620, Descartes was present on the Battle of the White Mountain, an essential battle within the early levels of the Thirty Years’ War between Protestant and Catholic states. Soon after this battle, he stops being a soldier. Well, identified British thinker and writer A. C. Grayling have instructed in his book that Descartes was a Jesuit spy.

Jesuits shaped some of the dedication of the Catholic orders. Grayling postulates that Descartes was ultimately engaged in intelligence activities or secret work to reclaim for Catholicism these components of Europe lost to Protestantism.

After being a soldier for 3 years, Descartes spent many of the remaining 28 years of his life within the Netherlands, which was the heartland of Protestantism. Moreover, it was not unusual for intellectuals to work as spies on the time on account of their command of languages and frequent travels.

17. Discourses on the Method

In his well-known work Discourses on the Method, he got here up with certainly one of his hottest sayings,” I feel, subsequently I’m”. To put it more merely, if somebody is skeptical of existence, the actual fact that they thought of it, is proof of their existence.

18. Philosopher Rene Descartes can be thought to be one of many main mathematicians of his time

Though most identified for his philosophy, Descartes was additionally one of many main mathematicians of his time. He invented the Cartesian coordinate system, which types the muse of analytic geometry.

Also referred to as Cartesian geometry after Rene Descartes, analytic geometry is the examination of geometry utilizing the Cartesian coordinate system.

It allowed for the first time the conversion of geometry into algebra; and vice versa. Analytic geometry is broadly used right now in physics and engineering, and likewise in aviation, rocketry, house science, and spaceflight.

Philosopher Rene Descartes additionally contributed considerably to the event of modern physics. Most importantly, he supplied the first distinctly modern formulation of legal guidelines of nature. He found an early type of the regulation of conservation of mechanical momentum. He additionally made essential contributions to the sector of optics.

19. Death of the daughter

He had a daughter named Francine with a servant girl in 1635, however, she died in 1640.

20. Philosopher Rene Descartes died to lack of sleep

It is alleged he could have died from lack of sleep, brought on by a strict study schedule and a case of pneumonia, in 1650.

21. He didn’t publish his work in 1633 after studying about Galileo’s home arrest

Rene Descartes wrote all of his main works throughout his years within the Netherlands. In the 4 years from 1629 to 1633, he labored on a treatise that contained a lot of his philosophy, from methodology to metaphysics, to physics and biology.

However, in 1633, Italian polymath Galileo Galilei was tried by the Catholic Church for his scientific work which the church thought-about as heresy.

He was pronounced responsible and sentenced to everlasting home arrest for the remainder of his life. Descartes, like Galileo, believed the solar was in the middle of the solar system.

He turned cautious after studying in regards to the trial of Galileo and he deserted his plans to publish Treatise on the World, which was to include the work he did from 1629 to 1633.

Though some components of The World was printed by Descartes in a few of his works, the complete textual content was printed in 1677, more than 25 years after the demise of Descartes.

22. Joined Army

Philosopher Rene Descartes joined the Army of Breda, since he wished to grow to be a navy officer, and took formal research of navy engineering.

23. Three Visions

After shutting himself in an oven in 1619, he had three visions, together with the basis for his common phrase “I think, therefore I am”.

24. His mom died quickly after giving delivery to him

René du Perron Descartes was born on 31st March 1596 in La Haye en Touraine, a small city in central France. This commune was later renamed Descartes to honor him. Rene was the youngest of three kids of Joachim Descartes and his spouse Jeanne Brochard.

Rene’s father Joachim was a councilor within the Parliament of Brittany in Rennes. Rene’s mom Jeanne Brochard died inside a year of giving delivery to him. Joachim remarried a number of years later. Rene Descartes was raised first by his maternal grandmother in La Haye after which by his great-uncle in Chatellerault.

Philosopher Rene Descartes was a weak and sickly youngster. Due to his fragile health, his training was postponed a number of years. In 1607, at the age of 8, Rene was admitted to the Jesuit College Royal Henry-Le-Grand at La Fleche.

After his commencement in 1614, Descartes entered the University of Poitiers. He studied right here for 2 years and took a regulation degree in 1616.

25. Descartes is taken into account the daddy of modern western philosophy

In 1637, the Discourse on the Method by Rene Descartes was printed. The ebook incorporates the perfect identified philosophical assertion of Rene Descartes, i.e. “I think, therefore I am”.

Philosopher Rene Descartes additional defined this assertion as if he doubted, then one thing or somebody should be doing the doubting; subsequently, the actual fact that he doubted proved his existence.

This proposition went on to grow to be a fundamental ingredient of Western philosophy. In 1641, a philosophical treatise by Descartes titled Meditations on First Philosophy was printed.

The book incorporates six meditations, during which Descartes first discards all perception in issues that aren’t completely sure, after which tries to ascertain what may be identified for certain.

The first two of Descartes’ Meditations formulate his well-known methodic doubt, which is a scientific process of being skeptical in regards to the fact of 1’s beliefs.

The Method and Meditations are thought to be among the many most influential works within the history of philosophy and Rene Descartes is taken into account as the daddy of modern western philosophy.

26. Role of arithmetic

The work he did in arithmetic helped present the basis for the calculus developed by Isaac Newton and others.

27. Law of reflection

The regulation of reflection was first talked about by Philosopher Rene Descartes in an essay on optics he printed.

28. Often known as an advocate

Philosopher Rene Descartes is usually known as an advocate for vivisection, as he’s stated to disclaim that animals can really feel pain.

29. He exchanged philosophical letters with Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia

Descartes visited the Hague to seek out help for his philosophical work because it was a gathering place for the main mental figures and highly effective males within the Netherlands.

It was right here that he met Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia, the eldest daughter of Frederick V. Princess Elisabeth took an eager curiosity within the work of Descartes and, in 1643, she started her well-known correspondence with him which lasted until his demise in 1650.

It is clear from the correspondence that Elisabeth had an outstanding and wide-ranging crucial philosophical acumen. Among different issues, she questioned Descartes’ thought of Dualism, or the thoughts being separate from the body; and she or he requested him how the soul may decide bodily spirits.

Connected together with his correspondence with Elisabeth, Philosopher Rene Descartes printed in 1649 his work titled Passions of the Soul, and he devoted it to the princess. The correspondence of Descartes and Princess Elisabeth is taken into account as an essential philosophical document.