Descartes: The Life and Times of a Genius

"This book is about the life and times of a genius," A. C. Grayling declares at the beginning of Descartes. Indeed, René Descartes (1596-1650) was one of the founders of the modern world. his life span -- the first half of the miraculous deventeenth century -- was replete with genius in the arts and sciences, and wracked by civil and international conflicts across Europe. At his birth, the world was still dominated by medieval beliefs in miracles and alchem6y; through his passion for rational thought, Descartes identified the intellectual tools his peers needed to free themselves from the frozen grip of religious authority, and by so doing became the founder of modern philosophy. His famous dictum, "Cogito, ergo sum" ("I think, therefore I am") remains one of the most famous maxims in Western thought. Drawing on new research and his own insights, A. C. Grayling posits an unexpected and entirely new aspect of Descartes' story: his mysterious and hidden life as a spy during the ruinous Thirty Years War. Yet whatever secrets Descartes harbored, the impact of his genius on the Western mind is undisputed -- just as, more than 350 years after his death, his writings remain on the syllabi of almost every university in the world. Beautifully written and accessible, Descartes is a stunning portrait of a man and his era. --