Unit 10: Prescribed texts (open-book Paper 2)
Topic 10.3: Meditations on First Philosophy — Descartes Questions
Practice 20 exam-style questions for IB Philosophy Topic 10.3. Review the question stems below, then unlock the full Question Bank to access markschemes, model answers, and AI grading.
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.1
Why does Descartes introduce the evil demon?
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.3
Res cogitans and res extensa are Descartes' names for:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.2
What does the cogito actually prove?
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.1
The dream argument makes the point that:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.2
True or false? The cogito proves that you have a body.
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.1
The doubt in Meditation I is 'methodological', meaning it is:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.1
Fill the gap with one word: an all-powerful ______ is Descartes' hardest test, letting him doubt even simple maths.
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.2
What makes the cogito 'self-proving'?
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.3
Descartes' dualism claims that:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.3
Fill the gap: in the wax argument, it is the ______, not the senses, that grasps what the wax truly is.
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.1
True or false? Descartes doubts everything because he genuinely wants to give up on knowledge.
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.2
The cogito ('I think, therefore I am') survives the evil-demon doubt because:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.1
Descartes' 'method of doubt' is best described as:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.1
The three waves of doubt, in order, are:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.3
In the wax argument, what tells Descartes it's the SAME wax after it melts?
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.3
The wax argument is meant to show that:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.3
Descartes' 'clear and distinct' argument concludes mind and body are distinct because:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.2
The cogito is certain, but Descartes notes it is certain:
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.3
True or false? For Descartes, the mind is defined by thinking and the body by extension (taking up space).
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2025• Aimnova original Paper 2 practice — 10.3.4
Why does Descartes need to prove that God exists?
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