Rationalism: Meaning and Key Concepts
Rationalism is a philosophical doctrine that holds the view that knowledge is derived
from reason rather than experience. Hence, for the rationalists, reason is the ultimate
source of knowledge and the test of its validity.
Rationalism is characterized by three major theses, namely:
1. Knowledge is derived from intuition (or rational insight) and deductive reasoning, rather
than from sense perception;
2. The ideas or concepts that constitute the mind’s ability to think are innate; and,
therefore,
3. Knowledge of a particular thing is innate.
What these three points suggest for the rationalists is that reality has an intrinsically
logical structure, which contains certain truths that can be accessed by the mind. For
this reason, the rationalists believe that truths exist and that the intellect can grasp
them directly. And for the rationalists, these truths are fundamental so that denying
them would cause us to fall into contradiction. In other words, these truths are self-
evidently true and that their negation is self-evidently false. Consider, for example, this
proposition: “All triangles have three angles”. Logically speaking, this proposition is
absolutely true because as long as an object is a triangle, it must have three angles. Also,
for the rationalists, the knowledge of this proposition is not derived from experience but
from reason. For sure, we need not resort to experience in order to say that indeed all
triangles have three angles. Through thinking alone, that is through the use of reason,
we can arrive at the knowledge that all triangles have three angles.
René Descartes, a 17th century French philosopher, was the leading figure in rationalism.
He believed that the information one gathers through the senses are not accurate.
Rationalism is a philosophical doctrine that holds the view that knowledge is derived
from reason rather than experience. Hence, for the rationalists, reason is the ultimate
source of knowledge and the test of its validity.
Rationalism is characterized by three major theses, namely:
1. Knowledge is derived from intuition (or rational insight) and deductive reasoning, rather
than from sense perception;
2. The ideas or concepts that constitute the mind’s ability to think are innate; and,
therefore,
3. Knowledge of a particular thing is innate.
What these three points suggest for the rationalists is that reality has an intrinsically
logical structure, which contains certain truths that can be accessed by the mind. For
this reason, the rationalists believe that truths exist and that the intellect can grasp
them directly. And for the rationalists, these truths are fundamental so that denying
them would cause us to fall into contradiction. In other words, these truths are self-
evidently true and that their negation is self-evidently false. Consider, for example, this
proposition: “All triangles have three angles”. Logically speaking, this proposition is
absolutely true because as long as an object is a triangle, it must have three angles. Also,
for the rationalists, the knowledge of this proposition is not derived from experience but
from reason. For sure, we need not resort to experience in order to say that indeed all
triangles have three angles. Through thinking alone, that is through the use of reason,
we can arrive at the knowledge that all triangles have three angles.
René Descartes, a 17th century French philosopher, was the leading figure in rationalism.
He believed that the information one gathers through the senses are not accurate.
