The will to reason : theodicy and freedom in Descartes / C.P. Ragland.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ragland, C. P., 1970- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Descartes, René, 1596-1650. Meditationes de prima philosophia.

Descartes, René.

Free will and determinism.

Theodicy.

Liberty--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Liberty.

Meditationes de prima philosophia (Descartes, René).

Physical Description:

xii, 255 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Oxford University Press, [2016]

Contents:

Chapter 1 Descartes' Deepest Worry 10

I The "Deceiving Nature" Doubt 14

II The Circle and the Two-Level Solution 22

III Descartes' Engagement with Skepticism 28

IV Conclusion 40

Chapter 2 The Fourth Meditation Theodicy 42

I The Problem of Error 44

II Descartes' Theodicy 50

A Unreality of Error 50

B Descartes' General Strategy (and the Eternal Truths) 51

C Skeptical Theism? 56

D The Big Picture 58

E Eree Will 60

F Possible Error: The Big Picture Returns 66

G The Theodicy Summarized 70

III Does It Prove Too Much? 71

IV Is It Circular? 73

A Ought Implies Can 75

B Assuming the Truth Rule for Defensive Purposes 79

V Does It Rest on a Flawed View of Freedom? 81

Chapter 3 Freedom and Alternative Possibilities in the Meditations 83

I The Definition of Freedom 84

A Retraction, Expansion, or Clarification? 86

B Against Retraction 87

C Expansion or Clarification? 89

II Texts that Seem to Favor the Expansion Reading 90

A The Explanatory Passage 90

B The Great Light Passage 93

III Pro-Clarification: The Infinite Will and the Image of God 95

A Differences between Divine and Human Freedom 96

B The Analogy between Divine and Human Freedom 100

C Similarities and Differences: Signs of an Implicit Distinction 103

IV Conclusion 106

Chapter 4 The Gibieuf Connection and the Later Descartes 107

I The Gibieuf Connection 107

A Background: Descartes and Gibieuf 109

B Agreement about Freedom and Indifference 111

C Explicit Agreement on Human Freedom? 114

D Implicit Agreement on Human Freedom 116

E What Agreement with Gibieuf Shows 118

II Descartes' Later Texts on Freedom 120

A Principles of Philosophy (1644) 122

B The 1644 Letter to Mesland 124

C The 1645 Letter to Mesland 126

Chapter 5 Freedom and Intellectual Determinism 129

I The Radical Libertarian Interpretation and the Meaning of CDD 131

II The Moderate Libertarian View 141

A Direct vs. Indirect Determination 141

B Grace 142

C The Interchange with Gassendi 144

D The Role of Attention 148

III The Compaubilist Reading 152

A Enlightened Agents 153

B Perfectly Conscientious Agents 157

C Two Difficulties for the Compatibilist Reading 159

D Freedom as the Ability to Get Things Right 161

IV Conclusion 165

Chapter 6 Is Descartes' View of Freedom Coherent? 167

I Degrees of Freedom: Preliminaries 167

A An Initial Puzzle 168

B Motivation and Degrees of Freedom: Other Philosophers 169

C Motivation and Degrees of Freedom: Descartes 172

II The 1645 Letter in Detail 175

A The Meaning of "Elicited" 176

B Spontaneity: Inversely Proportional to Indifference 177

C Spontaneity: Absolute and Relative 179

D Spontaneity and Perversity: Kenny's Objection 180

E Why Kenny's Objection Fails 182

III Final Worries 187

Chapter 7 Freedom and Divine Providence 191

I Introduction: The Problem of Providence and Freedom 192

II Concurrence and Providence: Scholastic Background 195

A Aquinas's Picture 196

B The Jesuit and Dominican Variations on Concurrence 198

C Competing Theories of Providence 200

III Descartes' Non-causal View of Providence 206

A Against Supernatural Compatibilism 207

B Correspondence with Elizabeth: Molinist Leanings 211

C Three Objections to the Molinist Interpretation Refuted 215

IV Providence and the Eternal Truths: A Hybrid View 220

A My Interpretation Defended 222

B Why Descartes Would Not Share My Worries 225.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Other Format:

Electronic version: Ragland, C. P., 1970- Will to reason.

ISBN:

9780190264451

0190264454

OCLC:

913890345