The word "dualism" comes from the Latin "dual." This is a doctrine containing the notion that there are two independent principles in the world. Their duality is expressed in bodily (material) and spiritual incarnations. This concept has been known in philosophy since the time of Zarathrusta (628-551 BC), which divided good and evil into two different categories.
In the ancient Greek philosophy of Plato, the concept of the duality of body and soul (the so-called anthropological dualism), assumes the existence of cosmological dualism, embodied in ideas and matter. Ancient philosophy was influenced by the Iranian, first developed by Zarathustra. She asserted the existence of a world in which good and bright deities fight with the evil and gloomy for domination of the universe and the souls of people.
This dualism in the philosophy of antiquity developed with a strong ethical side, transferred to the sphere of spirit and matter, where then (in Gnosticism), matter and body, and, consequently, the world, are associated with the principles of evil. On the other hand, the spirit (the soul and its pure “I”) become a pure and bright beginning. In many religions and philosophical directions, human dualism is developing and is embodied in the teachings of the soul and body, of God and the devil.
The philosophy of Christianity destroys the “ladder of love and beauty” of Plato, where the perfection of ideas in the Absolute opposes the world of similarities created by imperfect ones. In Christianity, the dualism of man is a disproportion of principle and dualism, expressed in the opposition of sins and virtues, which is most clearly expressed in the writings of Spinoza. Dualism in the philosophy of the East is unacceptable, since its traditions presuppose mutual understanding and interaction of soul and body, the presence of “yin” and “yang” in any phenomenon, both material and spiritual.
As a concept, dualism in the philosophy of a later period was developed by Descartes, who call him a prominent representative. Descartes was born in France in 1596 on March 31.
The life and education of Descartes from the age of eight took place in a Jesuit school, where he receives primary knowledge, continuing his education in Holland. There, he completely embarks on the path of studying mathematics, philosophy, physics, physiology, and astronomy. In Holland, his works, which have become famous, are published. The greatest fame comes after the publication of "Discussions about the method." Work on the book and publication was hindered by the attacks of the Inquisition, as a result of which Descartes changes the name and amends the text.
Fierce disputes immediately arise around the book, which little concern Descartes, he is more interested in the reaction of the Inquisition, since most recently, at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries, J. Bruno was burned, Galileo was condemned and the tongue was torn out of the philosopher Vanini, who was also burned. Subsequently, the works of Descartes were recognized heretical in France and sentenced to be burned. Descartes lived most of his life in Holland. At the age of 54, he died of pneumonia, having caught a cold in Switzerland, where he was forced to go at the request of the queen.
The term “dualism” in philosophy appeared together with the works of the German philosopher H. Wolf (1679–1749) and assumed the existence, existence and interaction of the material and spiritual principles both in the world and in man. In the meaning of contrasting good and evil, T. Hyde used the term in 1700, applying this concept in religious activity. P. Beil and Leibniz attached a similar meaning to the concept of dualism.
The followers and representatives of dualism developed in their studies the concept of Descartes' moving matter, as well as the concept of the metaphysical nature of mathematics, dialectics and analytic geometry. The philosophical works of Spinoza, Kant, Rickert in modern philosophy - Rorty and many other philosophers are based on the conclusions and postulates of the Cartesian philosophy of dualism.