Cartesianism is the philosophical and scientific
system of René Descartes and its subsequent
development by other seventeenth century thinkers,
most notably Nicolas Malebranche and Baruch
Spinoza.
Descartes is often regarded as the first thinker
to emphasize the use of reason to develop
the natural sciences.
For him, the philosophy was a thinking system
that embodied all knowledge, and expressed
it in this way:Cartesians view the mind as
being wholly separate from the corporeal body.
Sensation and the perception of reality are
thought to be the source of untruth and illusions,
with the only reliable truths to be had in
the existence of a metaphysical mind.
Such a mind can perhaps interact with a physical
body, but it does not exist in the body, nor
even in the same physical plane as the body.
The question of how mind and body interact
would be a persistent difficulty for Descartes
and his followers, with different Cartesians
providing different answers.
== Ontology ==
Descartes held that all existence consists
in three distinct substances, each with its
own essence:
matter, possessing extension in three dimensions
mind, possessing self-conscious thought
God, possessing necessary existence
== 
Epistemology ==
Descartes brought the question of how reliable
knowledge may be obtained (epistemology) to
the fore of philosophical enquiry.
Many consider this to be Descartes' most lasting
influence on the history of philosophy.Cartesianism
is a form of rationalism because it holds
that scientific knowledge can be derived a
priori from 'innate ideas' through deductive
reasoning.
Thus Cartesianism is opposed to both Aristotelianism
and empiricism, with their emphasis on sensory
experience as the source of all knowledge
of the world.For Descartes, the faculty of
deductive reason is supplied by God and may
therefore be trusted because God would not
deceive us.
== Geographical dispersal ==
In the Netherlands, where Descartes had lived
for a long time, Cartesianism was a doctrine
popular mainly among university professors
and lecturers.
In Germany the influence of this doctrine
was not relevant and followers of Cartesianism
in the German-speaking border regions between
these countries (e.g., the iatromathematician
Yvo Gaukes from East Frisia) frequently chose
to publish their works in the Netherlands.
In France, it was very popular, and gained
influence also among Jansenists such as Antoine
Arnauld, though there also, as in Italy, it
became opposed by the Church.
In Italy, the doctrine failed to make inroads,
probably since Descartes' works were placed
on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum in 1663.In
England, because of religious and other reasons,
Cartesianism was not widely accepted.
Though Henry More was initially attracted
to the doctrine, his own changing attitudes
toward Descartes mirrored those of the country:
"quick acceptance, serious examination with
accumulating ambivalence, final rejection."
== Notable Cartesians ==
Antoine Arnauld
Balthasar Bekker
Tommaso Campailla
Johannes Clauberg
Michelangelo Fardella
Antoine Le Grand
Adriaan Hereboord
Nicolas Malebranche
François Poullain de la Barre
Edmond Pourchot
Pierre-Sylvain Régis
Henricus Regius
Jacques Rohault
Christopher Wittich
== See also ==
Dualism
Meditations on First Philosophy
Mentalism (psychology)
Simulism
== References ==
== Bibliography ==
Francisque Bouillier, Histoire de la philosophie
cartésienne (2 volumes) Paris: Durand 1854
(reprint: BiblioBazaar 2010).
Eduard Jan Dijksterhuis, Descartes et le cartésianisme
hollandais.
Études et documents Paris: PUF 1951.
Tad M. Schmaltz (ed.), Receptions of Descartes.
Cartesianism and Anti-Cartesianism in Early
Modern Europe New York: Routledge 2005.
Richard A. Watson, The Downfall of Cartesianism
1673–1712.
A Study of Epistemological Issues in Late
17th Century Cartesianism The Hague: Martinus
Nijhoff 1966.
