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The Nature Of Self By Descartes

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Existence is defined as the fact or state of living or having objective reality, yet reality in my opinion is completely subjective. The nature of self is a highly controversial topic, ranging from Descartes belief of the mind being separate from the body to the Buddhist conviction of there not being a self to Goldstein’s incorporting the fact that self stems from the activity of synapsis in her writing. Adding to the controversy, the idea of a higher being most namely that of God or some alternative deity, modifies the idea of reality. My personal belief centers on the monism standpoint, with there being only the body and the body creating the mind – the two are not separate, and the nature of self is born from the different brain configurations and synapse formation. While I stand more on the monist side of the nature of self, the dualist side, most namely Descartes, claims that the mind can exist without a body. Yet how can the mind function without the brain itself? He argues “I think therefore I am” although in reality, one thinks due to their brain. The notion of dualism stems from the hopelessness that all humans possess – in short no one wants to die. How ideal is it that when one does pass on who they are, their essence, continues to live on? Better yet, when they do finally die, they would be greeted with eternal life and be welcomed into the arms of their creator. The concept of religion could also be thrown into the hopeless idealism of humans; it is simply a

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