Dualism - 1476 Words

Question: In dualism about the mind and body a more plausible view than the view that we are purely physical beings? Give reason for your answer. Dualism is the view that you consist of a body plus a soul, physicalism is the view that your mental life consists of physical processes in your brain. I hold the position that Physicalism is more plausible than dualism, my argument will be to look at Nagels opinions of both the philosophies and then draw my own conclusion about which is more plausible and finally consider the possibility about whether or not there is an option that a combination of the two could stand with a valid argument. In considering the view that dualism is a more plausible view than the view that we are†¦show more content†¦Dualism states that the connection between the mind and the brain takes form one of what might be called a soul. The mind is a separate entity which cannot be shared or experienced, and one persons experiences are their own. The brain is a separate entity which is connected to the body; it reacts in certain ways which caused certain effects which can be seen as electrical impul ses. Therefore the brain and the mind are separate entities, Therefore there is nothing that can be seen which could lead us to believe that the mind and brain are connected. Therefore we can only speculate what might be there. Dualism provides a rational explanation in the form of a soul. However some people my doubt this and prefer to rationalise thinking more, the idea as Nagel explains is that if life has evolved thus far by coincidence then it is entirely possible for the mental link between mind and brain to have also developed by itself. This is the basis of physicalism. The mind is part of the brain and thinking and feeling is a physical response of the brain. Nagel uses the example that, ‘diamonds are composed of carbon, the same material as coal; the atoms are just differently arranged. And water, as we all known, is composed of Hydrogen and oxygen, even though the two elements are nothing like water when taken by themselves. Another point which he goes on to make is, that scientists have toShow MoreRelatedDualism And Dualism970 Words   |  4 Pagesbe making my own argument for a dualist and supply the physicalist response to the argument and its validity. Understanding the difference between dualism and physicalism is beneficial to the mind and body problem. Descartes was a substance dualist. He believed that there were two kinds of substance: matter and mind. The broad definition of dualism is a view in which the body and mind are completely separate entities constructed with different kinds of things. The mind is made of an immaterial substanceRead MoreArgument of Dualism1036 Words   |  5 PagesArguments of Dualism Dualism is the theory that mind and matter are two distinct things. The main argument for dualism is that facts about the objective external world of particles and fields of force, as revealed by modern physical science, are not facts about how things appear from any particular point of view, whereas facts about subjective experience are precisely about how things are from the point of view of individual conscious subjects. They have to be described in the first person asRead MoreDualism Essay844 Words   |  4 PagesDescartes argues in favor of dualism, the mind is completely independent of the body and vice versa. We have a sense this kind of dualism exists when we say, â€Å"I am a mind with a body.† Descartes argues that the self exists in consciousness and that the body is simply a machine the mind controls. Further, dualists support their argument by comparing essences of both the mind and body; the mind is indivisible and free and the body is infinitely divisible and i s determined by the laws of the physicalRead MoreDescartes Teachings On Dualism977 Words   |  4 Pages To understand how the dualist commits a category mistake, one must first understand Descartes’ teachings on dualism from the Meditations on First Philosophy. Firstly, Descartes sees the mind as an immaterial, non-physical soul. He believes that his thoughts can be altered but he can never be tricked into the thinking that he is thinking when he is not. While he has complete faith in the existence of his mind, he doubts the existence of his body and the existence of other people s minds. The reasonRead MoreThe Strengths and Weaknesses of Dualism4580 Words   |  19 PagesDualism is the belief that reality consists of two different, separate substances: that of the mental and that of the physical. In philosophy of mind, the belief that the mental and physical are deeply different in kind: thus the mental is at least not identical with the physical. It directly opposes mat erialism, as dualism dictates that the mind is unidentifiable to the body, as opposed to stating that the mind and body exist as one. The concept of dualism is not only fundamental in philosophyRead MoreRealism : Reality And Dualism1340 Words   |  6 PagesTeena Lin PHI 1500 Fall 2017 Final Paper Reality is Dualism There are currently four major theories about the nature of reality and substance— materialism/physicalism, idealism, transcendental idealism, and dualism. Materialism is the theory that there is only the physical and material world. Idealism takes the position that reality is made up of ideas and immaterial. Transcendental idealism holds the idea that our experience of things are shaped by how they appear to us and not by what they areRead MoreThe Concept of Dualism Essay1013 Words   |  5 Pagesmachinequot; form of substance dualism best solves the mind body problem. My views in this area have been influenced by my twelve years of Catholic education. The soul, or mind, depending on your level of belief, was a complete and separate entity and was the center of a human being. The body was an ambulatory device that the soul directed. The idea that the mind is a separate entity and that it is independent of the physical body is the central point of substance dualism. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Read MoreThe Argument of Dualism Essay960 Words   |  4 Pages In my mind, dualism is a more attractive view to take when considering the mind-brain issue. The idea that the mind is a separate entity and that it is independent of the physical body is the central point of dualism. One reason it appeals to me is because of my religion, my Catholic upbringing. Introspection is another good reason why dualism is a little more logical to me than materialism.. It logically explains why the mind and brain are separate. Also, the divisibility argument raisesRead MoreThe Problem Of Separation And Dualism1399 Words   |  6 Pagessuggests a problem of separation and dualism. Dualism shall be claimed, it is an intuitive position; it offers an explanation of the mind and body in terms of substances (Descartes, 1641) or properties (Strawson, 1959), in which the mind is somehow considered as a non-physical thing, thus separated from the physical world. In contras t, a rival view is that there are only physical things, hence there is no separation between mind and body as suggested by dualism, and that the mind is most accuratelyRead MoreThe Problem Of Separation And Dualism1399 Words   |  6 Pagessuggests a problem of separation and dualism. Dualism shall be claimed, it is an intuitive position; it offers an explanation of the mind and body in terms of substances (Descartes, 1641) or properties (Strawson, 1959), in which the mind is somehow considered as a non-physical thing, thus separated from the physical world. In contrast, a rival view is that there are only physical things, hence there is no separation between mind and body as suggested by dualism, and that the mind is most accurately