Answer:
Descartes uses methodic doubt to question whether the knowledge gained through sensory experience is reliable. He argues that the senses can be deceiving, and therefore, knowledge gained through sensory experience can be false. One of the examples he uses is the Dream Argument, which posits that when we dream, we perceive things just as vividly as we do when we are awake, and we believe them to be real. However, upon awakening, we realize that what we thought was real was nothing more than an illusion. Therefore, Descartes argues that there is no way to distinguish between the reality we perceive while awake and the illusions we perceive while dreaming.
To further his argument, Descartes introduces the Evil Genius, a powerful and deceptive being that could potentially deceive us into believing that everything we perceive is real, when in fact, it is all an illusion. The Evil Genius argument pushes the limits of Descartes' skepticism by suggesting that even the most fundamental truths, such as the existence of the self or the physical world, could be an illusion created by the Evil Genius. This argument shows that not only our senses, but also our reasoning and intellectual faculties could be unreliable, and therefore, knowledge gained through them should be subject to doubt.
Overall, Descartes' methodic doubt is a systematic approach to doubt all knowledge that is not absolutely certain. By applying this approach to the Dream Argument and the Evil Genius argument, he shows that our perception of reality is unreliable, and thus, knowledge gained through it should be subject to doubt.
Step-by-step explanation: