Descartes: An Intellectual Biography

Ren Descartes (1596-1650) is the father of modern philosophy, and one of the greatest thinkers of all time. His unique contribution to Western thought covers not only philosophy but also science and mathematics, though his most famous project was the exploration of the foundations of human knowledge, starting from the formula Cogito ergo sum, `I am thinking therefore I exist'. This is the first intellectual biography of Descartes in English. Stephen Gaukroger, a leading expert on Descartes, traces his intellectual development from childhood, establishing the connections between his intellectual and personal life, and placing these in the context of the cultural environment of the time. This book offers for the first time a full understanding of how Descartes developed his revolutionary ideas.