Rene Descartes Biography

Rene Descartes Biography

Full Name: Mr. René Descartes
Date of Birth: March 31, 1596
Place of Birth: La Haye, Touraine (modern day Descartes), France
Died: February 11, 1650
Place of Death: Stockholm, Sweden
Classification: Scientists & Thinkers


Born to a well-connected family in France, his mother died when he was young and his father was a judge in the High Court. He received a solid education at a Jesuit College, then studied at the University of Poitiers, where he earned a degree in law, but never went on to become a lawyer. Instead, he wanted to explore the world, travel, and seek a truth that academia could not provide. An autobiography of René Descartes and his travels was later published and called “…Seeking the Truth in the Sciences”.

After his “studies” abroad, Descartes returned to Paris and then frequented other regions of Western Europe, but not before selling all his land and investing the money that would give him enough to live on for the rest of his life. His work in the natural sciences was just beginning and appeared in his work the Meditations on FirstPhilosophy, which helped set a precedent for scientific reasoning.

Although René Descartes is famous for his theories on existing, namely as reflected in the famous phrase, “I think, therefore I am”, which displays his conclusions that humans are different than animals only in regard to rational thought. However, this rationale can be overthrown in moments of emotion – such as seen in passion, vengeance, or even fondness for another.