Editing Idea (section)

===René Descartes===
[[Descartes]] often wrote of the meaning of the ''idea'' as an image or representation, often but not necessarily "in the mind", which was well known in the [[vernacular]]. Despite Descartes' invention of the non-Platonic use of the term, he at first followed this vernacular use.<sup>b</sup> In his ''[[Meditations on First Philosophy]]'' he says, "Some of my thoughts are like images of things, and it is to these alone that the name 'idea' properly belongs." He sometimes maintained that ideas were [[innate idea|innate]]<ref>Vol 4: 196–198</ref> and uses of the term ''idea'' diverge from the original primary scholastic use. He provides multiple non-equivalent definitions of the term, uses it to refer to as many as six distinct kinds of entities, and divides ''ideas'' inconsistently into various genetic categories.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/descartes-ideas |title=Descartes's Ideas |access-date=2007-05-15 |archive-date=2007-06-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609135420/http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/descartes-ideas/ |url-status=live }}</ref> For him knowledge took the form of ideas and philosophical investigation is devoted to the consideration of these entities.