Descartes in the Third Meditation distinguishes formal reality (the mode of the idea) from objective reality (the represented content), treating these as genuinely separable properties.

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Descartes: # Descartes René Descartes was a French philosopher and mathematician from the 1600s who fundamentally changed how people think about knowledge and the mind. He's famous for the idea "I think, therefore I am" (cogito ergo sum), which means that the very fact that you can think proves you exist—a foundation for modern philosophy. He also invented the coordinate system used in mathematics (the x and y axes on a graph), which connects geometry and algebra in practical ways we still use today.
Genuinely separable properties(as how Descartes treats formal and objective reality): Qualities or characteristics that are truly distinct from each other—meaning you can think about one without thinking about the other.
Mode of the idea(as another term for formal reality): The particular way or form in which an idea exists as a thought in your mind.
Third Meditation(Cartesian philosophy and epistemology): A section of René Descartes' famous work 'Meditations on First Philosophy' where he attempts to prove God exists using logical arguments.

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