razionalismo

Razionalismo (rationalism) is a philosophical doctrine that regards reason as the primary source of knowledge. Proponents argue that significant parts of reality and truth can be grasped independently of sensory experience through principles of logic and mathematics, and that some ideas are innate or built into the structure of thought. Knowledge is often pursued through deductive reasoning from self-evident principles.

Historically, razionalismo emerged in early modern Europe as a counterpoint to empiricism. The movement is usually associated with continental rationalism, notably René Descartes, Baruch Spinoza, and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Descartes emphasized methodological doubt and the cogito as a foundation for certainty; Spinoza attempted to deduce a unified system from axioms; Leibniz defended the existence of innate ideas and a rational order underlying experience.

Core ideas include the existence of a priori knowledge, innate ideas, clarity and distinctness as marks of true knowledge, and a method of systematic doubt leading to self-evident propositions. Rationalists often model knowledge on the certainty and deductive structure found in mathematics, arguing that reason can reveal necessary truths about reality and substances or minds.

Influence and reception: rationalism shaped metaphysics, epistemology, mathematics, and the philosophy of science, and participated in the broader Enlightenment debate with empiricism. The Kantian synthesis later sought to reconcile rationalist and empiricist strands by arguing that while knowledge begins with experience, the mind contributes essential organizing structures. Critiques center on questions about the source of innate ideas and the extent to which reason alone can justify knowledge.