Final answer:
Descartes' 'Meditations' claims existence as a thinking entity with his 'Cogito, ergo sum' and introduces dualism by distinguishing between mind and body as separate substances.
Step-by-step explanation:
In René Descartes' Meditations, he attempts to lay new philosophical foundations by making two central claims: first, that he exists as a thinking thing through his famous assertion “Cogito, ergo sum” (I think, therefore I am); and second, that there is a fundamental difference between mind and body, a concept known as dualism. Descartes argues that the mind, which encompasses thinking, imagining, conceiving, and more, is a non-physical, non-extended substance. Contrarily, the body is a physical, extended substance. His argument aims to prove that mind and body are two distinct entities, the former being essentially non-material and immortal.
While some consider Descartes a skeptic, he endeavors to move beyond skepticism in attempt to establish certain knowledge. This initiates the mind-body problem, which wrestles with the nature of consciousness and its interaction with the physical world. Despite criticisms and modern scientific challenges that lean on evidence from brain structure and function, Descartes' dualistic view remains influential in philosophical discussions about the nature of self and consciousness.