More TV Examples

I think my favorite example of someone who has adopted a Cartesian philosophy is Dr. Gregory House, the main character of the fictional TV show House, M.D. Obviously, being a fictional TV show, certain aspects of Dr. House's persona are far more extreme than could be considered realistic (if you've seen the show, you know what I mean... he can be a complete monster sometimes). However, the writing is extremely smart usually, as can be seen from the obvious parallels between Dr. House and Sherlock Holmes (according to the producers, the similarities are intended). Here is a man who will stop at nothing to get to the truth. His love of reason and logic is often at odds with the consciences of his co-workers, which creates a lot of the driving emotion for the show. His inability to leave things unexplained is a common focus point of the show (such as Kutner's unexplained suicide), and his sense of right and wrong are easily skewed while in pursuit of the "truth" (he claims the Hippocratic Oath nullifies a "Do Not Resuscitate" clause in one episode, but helps a man commit suicide to save his son in another). I think part of what makes him so fascinating is that he does not fall prey to some forms of dualism that you see in most people. To quote Dr. House, "There HAS to be a reason." He epitomizes the Cartesian philosophy of categorizing everything, and valuing reason above all else.