Passions of the Soul

Descartes initially wants to understand the functions of the soul as well as the functions of the body, so that he can classify the purpose of each. He also states that “a passion of the soul is usually an action of the body,”( Descartes 298) Henceforth, the rule that he establishes is, “all that we experience as being in us, and what we see can exist in wholly inanimate bodies, must be attributed to our bodies alone…all that is in us which we cannot in any way conceive possibly pertaining to a body must be attributed to our soul.” (Descartes 298) Since we know the body does not think, but only acts in accordance with the soul, the soul must be the primary source of knowledge. Descartes then examines the body, and believes that the heat inside us is relevant to the body. Descartes uses an example of a dead body, which would not have heat and does not move, and it is because the soul is not present that makes the body limb. “it was believed that our natural heat and all the movements of our body depends on the soul,” (Descartes 299) Descartes is stating that the body and soul are connected to each other, and the body does not work without a soul. Descartes continues to describe the different parts of the body and their functions. He also concludes that there are animal spirits that enter the brain, that allow our nervous system and muscles to function. These spirits can make our limbs and muscles act in accordance with our senses. He gives an example of how if someone were to place their hand in front of your eye in an aggressive manner, we will close our eyes naturally, “against our will” (Descartes 302).
Descartes continues to study the soul, and concludes that the only thing that our soul controls in our body is our thoughts. He also continues to describe perception “for it is certain that we cannot will anything without by the same means perceiving that we will it” (Descartes 304). Therefore perception and will can be the same.
Descartes then defines the passions of the soul by saying that “the soul differ from all its other thoughts…sensations or excitations of the soul which we relate especially to it, and which are caused..by some movement of the spirits” (Descartes 306). However the soul can overpower the passions.
He continues to say that a gland is where the spirits enter the body, and this takes place in the brain. Passions are a result of the spirits in the brain.
In conclusion Descartes states that “the strength of the soul is not sufficient without the knowledge of the truth,”(Descartes 314). He refers to the confirmation of the truth while the soul is still in the body.