“Everything is self-evident.”
- March 31, 1596 – February 11, 1650
- French
- Philosopher, Mathematician, Scientist, Father of Modern Philosophy
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Quote
“Everything is self-evident.”
Explanation
This quote is not verifiably attributed to René Descartes in any of his known writings. Descartes was deeply concerned with identifying what can be known with certainty, and his method involved doubting everything that was not self-evident until he arrived at indubitable truths. While he highly valued self-evident propositions, especially those grasped through intuition, he never claimed that everything is self-evident.
In fact, Descartes distinguished sharply between self-evident truths and those that require deduction to be understood. His philosophical project began by casting doubt on many common beliefs precisely because they were not self-evident. Therefore, claiming that “everything is self-evident” would contradict the very foundation of his method, which sought certainty only through rigorous analysis.
Because this statement misrepresents Descartes’ philosophy and lacks credible sourcing, no formal explanation can be given under the rules provided.
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