Full Idea
For Descartes in providing an essence for an item [such as God, wax, or a mathematical kind] we provide an encapsulating formula defining the phenomenon.
Gist of Idea
Descartes gives an essence by an encapsulating formula
Source
report of René Descartes (Meditations [1641]) by Joseph Almog - Nature Without Essence I
Book Reference
-: 'Journal of Philosophy' [-], p.362
A Reaction
I argue that this is not what Aristotle intended be an essentialist definition, which can be quite long, like a scientific monograph. Descartes firmly rejected Aristotle's 'substantial form' as essence.