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History & Civilization +3 more

Descartes

How René Descartes split mind from body and created the philosophical foundation for modern Western thought.

37 min readReading time
17Sections

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Chapters

17 total
  1. 01Prologue
  2. 02Chapter One - The Child of War
  3. 03Chapter Two - A Hidden Blade
  4. 04Chapter Three - Soldier of Fortune
  5. 05Chapter Four - The Dream That Changed Everything
  6. 06Chapter Five - Geometry and God
  7. 07Chapter Six - The Method
  8. 08Chapter Seven - Cogito, Ergo Sum
  9. 09Chapter Eight - A World of Machines
  10. 10Chapter Nine - Enemies at the Gates
  11. 11Chapter Ten - The Discourse and the Demon
  12. 12Chapter Eleven - Science and Shadows
  13. 13Chapter Twelve - The Queen and the Ghost
  14. 14Chapter Thirteen - The Bones of Descartes
  15. 15Chapter Fourteen - Mind vs. Matter
  16. 16Chapter Fifteen - The Rise of the Rationalists
  17. 17Chapter Sixteen - The Doubt That Built the World
Edition notes and short pages
Dedications, notices, acknowledgments, author notes, and short passages from this book.

Descartes

Descartes
The Man Who Split Mind from Matter

by James Johnson

Dedication

For everyone who couldn’t stop overthinking.
Turns out you were onto something.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


THANKS TO THE quiet kids, the question-askers, and the ones who think before they speak.
And thanks to René, for making doubt a feature, not a flaw.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR


JJ IS THE author of Plato, Intelligence, and over 250 books about how humans think, believe, and build. His work blends history, psychology, and philosophy with a voice that cuts through the noise. He writes fast, thinks fast, and occasionally trusts nothing.

COPYRIGHT


© 2025 JAMES JOHNSON All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means — digital, mechanical, or otherwise — without permission from the author, except for brief quotations used in reviews or commentary.

This book is a historical interpretation. Some quotes have been paraphrased for clarity. Any errors in judgment, tone, or speculation are fully the author’s fault.