Define Cartesian Mind.
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The term "Cartesian Mind" refers to the philosophical conception of the mind associated with RenΓ© Descartes, a 17th-century French philosopher and mathematician. Descartes is renowned for his dualistic view of the mind and body, famously expressed in the statement "Cogito, ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am).
In the Cartesian Mind, the mind (or soul) is considered a thinking, non-material substance distinct from the body and the external world. Descartes proposed a radical separation between the mental and the physical, asserting that while the body is a material, extended substance subject to the laws of physics, the mind is an immaterial, thinking substance not governed by the same laws.
Descartes' dualism has been influential in Western philosophy and has shaped discussions on the nature of consciousness and the mind-body relationship. The Cartesian Mind implies a certain independence and autonomy of the mind from the body, fostering debates about the nature of mental states, consciousness, and the possibility of mind-body interaction.
Critics have challenged Descartes' dualism, pointing to the difficulties in explaining how an immaterial mind could interact with a material body. Nonetheless, the Cartesian Mind remains a foundational concept in the history of philosophy, contributing to ongoing inquiries into the nature of consciousness and the self.