The Blackwell Guide to Descartes Meditations

The Blackwell Guide to Descartes’ Meditations consists of twelve newly commissioned essays on one of the most influential and widely taught texts in the history of philosophy. The volume touches on all of the major themes of the Meditations , including the mind–body relation, the nature of the mind, and the existence of the material world. The volume also includes William Molyneux’s famous early translation of the Meditations. Situating the Meditations ’ arguments in their philosophical and historical context, the essays in this volume constitute an ideal companion to Descartes’ masterwork.

Notes on Contributors. References to Descartes’ Works. Introduction. Stephen Gaukroger. 1. The Meditations and the Objections and Replies: Roger Ariew (University of South Florida, Tampa). 2. Descartes and skepticism: Charles Larmore (University of Chicago). 3. The cogito and foundations of knowledge: Edwin Curley (University of Michigan). 4. The nature of the mind: Marleen Rozemond (University of Toronto). 5. The doctrine of substance: Jorge Secada (University of Virginia). 6. The doctrine of ideas: Steven Nadler (University of Wisconsin). 7. Proofs for the existence of God: Lawrence Nolan (California State University) and Alan Nelson (University of California – Irvine). 8. The Cartesian circle: Gary Hatfield (University of Pennsylvania). 9. Judgement and will: Michael Della Rocca (Yale University). 10. Descartes’ proof of the existence of matter: Desmond Clarke (University College Cork). 11. The mind–body relation: John Cottingham (Reading University). 12. Seventeenth–century responses to the Meditations: Tad Schmaltz (Duke University). Appendix: Descartes’ Metaphysical Meditations, trans. William Molyneux (1680). References. Index

Stephen Gaukroger is Professor of History of Philosophy and History of Science at the University of Sydney, and presently holds an Australian Research Council Professorial Fellowship. His works include Descartes: An Intellectual Biography (1995), Francis Bacon and the Transformation of Early–modern Philosophy (2001), and Descartes’ System of Natural Philosophy (2002).

“Acute yet bereft of jargon, scholarly yet footnote–free, imaginative yet keenly focused – Descartes could not have dreamt of a more attractive Guide.” André Gombay, University of Toronto “Stephen Gaukroger has assembled a splendid collection of essays written by some of the best scholars in the field. It helps the reader navigate from Descartes’ predecessors, through the Meditations , and on to the later reception of this seminal text. As an extra bonus the volume includes an important seventeenth–century English translation of Descartes’ text. This volume will be used with profit by students of Descartes at every level.” Daniel Garber, Princeton University