Brain Vs Materialism

1085 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Physicalism and the mind body problem

Materialism: There Will Always Be More Evidence for the Brain than for the Mind Philosophers have always argued about the mind. Some say it is a whole separate part of us that continues to live after we die, others say there is no mind, it is just God who guides us and makes our choices for us. There is a third group, materialism, that agrees that we don’t have an immaterial “mind”, but rather than saying it is God who decides everything for us, this group believes that the brain controls all of our decisions and actions. Materialism goes further than the philosophy of the mind. Materialism, also known as physicalism, is the idea that everything in the universe depends on physical processes (Smart, 2014). When it comes to theories of the mind, …show more content…

This law says that if the mind and brain are the same thing, they must share the same properties. The argument is that they do not share the same properties, for example, the property of love. Love is a property of the mind, but not the brain. To the brain, love is the result of certain c-fibers firing at the same time. Personally, I would argue that the feeling of love from the c-fibers firing is identical to the property of love in the mind. It is strange that to prove there is no “mind” one must prove that the mind and the brain is the same thing. The main idea of materialism is that there is no “mind”, only functions of the …show more content…

The parallelism view states that God has our minds pre-set, which goes along with the idea that God chose the best of all possible worlds. He could not have chosen the best possible world if he did not know each and every thought we would ever have. Idealist monism is even more intense suggesting that we do not have any brain states. According to this view, we do not think at all or make any choices for ourselves. This cannot be right because we feel like we make choices. If we were preprogrammed by God, everyone would believe in God and there would only be one religion. These views also rely on the idea that God exists, but again, no one has proven God’s

Show More
Related

  • Mind Over Matter: An Epic Struggle

    1019 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the struggle of mind over matter, an individual needs to have courage to use the knowledge that he or she possess. By using the knowledge available to us, we as individuals have the ability to overcome opposing forces in our lives which seem to keep us from progressing (mentally and emotionally), and which can seem larger than life. In Homer's epic The Odyssey, The use of cunning to disguise and deceive and to ultimately overcome the godlike opposition that manifests itself many times throughout the book, and makes Odysseus' return home possible. Without the ability to deceive, Odysseus' brute strength alone would have exhibited a futile display of power in the presence of the gods of Ancient Greece. Much like the lives of individuals, if we do not use our cunning and wit in a most effective manner, and rely on strength instead knowledge, we are destined for a life of failure and/or mediocracy . If Odysseus hadn't had the courage and cunning to return home his destiny would have consisted of spending the rest of his life on an island with Calypso, miserable.

    Read More

  • David Armstrong The Man Who Despised Dualism

    557 Words  | 2 Pages

    When addressing the mind and body issue, there are often multiple explanations. Out of those multiple explanations, Dualism and Materialism are the ones to stick out. Dualism stands on the ground that the mind and body are two fundamentally different things. There is in no way that you can make a distinction between the two. For no one can explain how a non-physical entity can affect a physical body. On the other hand Materialism (aka physicalism) stands the ground that there is only one entity in the world, which has to be physical. That everything in the universe has meaning in physical terms, for the brain is the mind.

    Read More

  • The Mind as a Function of the Body by Richard Taylor

    1003 Words  | 3 Pages

    Richard Taylor explained why the body and the mind are one, and why they are not two separate substances. In the article “The Mind as a Function of the Body”, Taylor divides his article in a number of sections and explains clearly why dualism, or the theory that the mind and the body are separate is not conceivable. In one of these sections it is explained in detail the origin of why some philosophers and people believe in dualist metaphysics. As stated by Taylor “when we form an idea of a body or a physical object, what is most likely to come to mind is not some person or animal but something much simpler, such as a stone or a marble”(133). The human has the tendency to believe a physical object as simple, and not containing anything complex. A problem with believing this is that unlike a stone or a marble a human (or an animal) has a brain and the body is composed of living cells (excluding dead skin cells, hair, and nails which are dead cells). The f...

    Read More

  • Brain Gives Birth to Reality

    1174 Words  | 3 Pages

    Everything that is real is a lie except your thoughts. If someone approached you with this statement you would assume they are insane and you would try to convince them that you are real and the world is real. As you begin to try to prove reality you begin to question yourself, under what circumstances do we understand reality? As we acknowledge what we believe to be realities, we form conclusions and assurances about our own existence and the existence of everything around us. Because our existence is assured through our perception of reality, we believe to be part of an existing real world. The existence of the real world is based upon belief and cannot be proven. The existence of the real world originates from our brains. Reality is dependent of our perception, experiences, senses, and reasoning.

    Read More

  • Property Dualism: The Main Issue Of The Mind-Body Problem

    1110 Words  | 3 Pages

    The mind-body problem can be a difficult issue to discuss due to the many opinions and issues that linger. The main issue behind the mind-body problem is the question regarding if us humans are only made up of matter, or a combination of both matter and mind. If we consist of both, how can we justify the interaction between the two? A significant philosophical issue that has been depicted by many, there are many prominent stances on the mind-body problem. I believe property dualism is a strong philosophical position on the mind-body issue, which can be defended through the knowledge argument against physicalism, also refuted through the problems of interaction.

    Read More

  • Fodor's Functionalism

    1311 Words  | 3 Pages

    Fodor begins his article on the mind-body problem with a review of the current theories of dualism and materialism. According to dualism, the mind and body are two separate entities with the body being physical and the mind being nonphysical. If this is the case, though, then there can be no interaction between the two. The mind could not influence anything physical without violating the laws of physics. The materialist theory, on the other hand, states that the mind is not distinct from the physical. In fact, supporters of the materialist theory believe that behavior does not have mental causes. When the materialist theory is split into logical behaviorism and the central-state identity theory, the foundation of functionalism begins to form. Logical behaviorism states that every mental feeling has the same meaning as an if-then statement. For example, instead of saying "Dr. Lux is hungry," one would say "If there was a quart of macadamia brittle nut in the freezer, Dr. Lux would eat it." The central-state identity theory states that a certain mental state equals a certain neurophysiological state. The theory works in a way similar to Berkeley’s representation of objects. Both mental states and objects are a certain collection of perceptions that together identify the particular state or object.

    Read More

  • The Argument of Dualism

    963 Words  | 2 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 raises good points to allow dualism to appear to be the more attractive idea in my eyes.

    Read More

  • Dwecks Brainology Summary

    1113 Words  | 3 Pages

    In The article “Brainology” “Carol S Dweck, a professor of psychology at Stanford University, differentiates between having a fixed and growth mindset in addition how these mindsets have a deep effect on a student’s desire to learn. Individuals who have a fixed mindset believe they are smart without putting in effort and are afraid of obstacles, lack motivation, and their focus is to appear smart.. In contrast, students with a growth mindset learn by facing obstacles and are motivated to learn. Dwecks argues that students should develop a growth mindset.

    Read More

  • Arguments Against Dualism

    1042 Words  | 3 Pages

    The debate as to the true nature of human beings, the existence of free will and the validity of science is centered on two philosophical theories; dualism and materialism. Under dualism, the proponents believe that there are two kinds of matter that make up human beings which is the physical presence and the non-physical mind or soul . Materialism on the one hand proposes that man and matter is one and the same thing and there cannot be in existence any other non-physical entity therefore . Materialism is one of the major theories that greatly oppose dualism.

    Read More

  • The Ultimate Nature of Matter

    2017 Words  | 5 Pages

    Materialists claim that everything is either a physical thing or an aspect of a physical thing, and no physical thing is dependent on the mind. A physical thing is not necessarily a solid object, but...

    Read More

  • The Mind, Functionalism And The Mind-Body Problem

    980 Words  | 2 Pages

    The mind is a very interesting phenomena, it is something that we know exists in a basic sense, but there are just some things that we cannot know about the mind, for example, we know that the mind is directly tied to the brain, but we do not know whether the brain is a spiritual entity that controls the brain, or if the brain creates what we call the mind, which embodies our conscience. this, in a basic sense is a start to the problem to be discussed, the mind-body problem is the challenge of explaining how mental states such as thoughts and other mental processes relate to the physical worlds events states and processes, since the body and mind operate on two completely different planes; the physical and non-physical. This is known as the mind-body problem, which is a crucial problem understand in

    Read More

  • Monism Essay

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    The operations of the mind are simply seen as the operations of the brain, it is a single substance, in which is” responsible for generating and controlling bodily and mental states”. Without the brain, we are dead. Idealism is a belief, in which everything is a product of one higher mind. This contrasts to physicalism, as ideas or thoughts are unified to be controlled by God. Mastin (2008) noted that “the real things are mental entities, not physical material, which only exist in the sense that they are perceived”. Neutral monism, by William James (1842-1910) and Bertrand Russel (1872-1970) believed that the ultimate reality can be perceived as either physical/mental. There is not much care for which property it is, therefore only focuses on that it is only one thing. (Thales, 624-545 BCE) viewed panpsychism, as the fact that “everything exhibits at least some quality of consciousness, but ultimately, is one pool (substrate) of consciousness”. Everything, including non-living objects have its own element of individual consciousness. Dualism is a belief that “both mental and physical realms are possible, but

    Read More

  • What Is The Difference Between The Mind And The Body

    1101 Words  | 3 Pages

    For those who believe that the mind and body are one must believe that both make one person. However, what if someone gets an organ transplant? People that believe that the mind and body are one must believe that a new being is made because it is a new body, when in fact it is still the same person as before except now with a healthier organ. Also, hypothetically speaking if a mind can be transplanted into another body, would the person be a different person just because of the change of body? Absolutely not, you would have the same ideas, thoughts, and emotions as before. The only difference would be your physical physique. Another counter argument is with the problem energy. Jerry Fodor wrote in The Mind-Body Problem, “To put it another way, how can the nonphysical give rise to the physical without violating the laws of the conservation of mass, of energy and of momentum? “ The explanation is as simple as the mind converting the energy to the energy needed for the body to respond to and move to it. Next, the idea of the mind and brain being separate is absurd to me. As an analogy, a book is a physical object, however the book is “about” something. So it is physical and intentional at the same time. This relates to the brain and the mind because the brain is complex, but when it is all added up the product is something. That something is the

    Read More

  • Cartesian Dualism and Gilbert Ryle

    1031 Words  | 3 Pages

    two distinct kinds of entities, bodies and minds (1). All objects that exist or can exist belong to one of these categories. The two forms are said to be mutually exclusive and commonly defined by fundamentally different characteristics, yet both are required to accurately define the world around us. According to Descartes, the body is a tangible physical substance (the unthinking thing), whereas the mind is an intangible non-physical substance (the thinking thing) and comes metaphysically before the body (3). The mind and body casually interact with one another while maintaining their distinctiveness: the eyes perceive objects and then focus the image to the pineal gland, where it transmits the information to the non-physical mind; the mind then may transmit a signal to the body, telling it what to do. The mind and body are independent from one another, yet they work in harmony; the mind receives signals from the body and the body responds to signals from the mind.

    Read More

  • Gilbert Ryle’s The Concept of Mind

    1095 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gilbert Ryle’s The Concept of Mind (1949) is a critique of the notion that the mind is distinct from the body, and is a rejection of the philosophical theory that mental states are distinct from physical states. Ryle argues that the traditional approach to the relation of mind and body (i.e., the approach which is taken by the philosophy of Descartes) assumes that there is a basic distinction between Mind and Matter. According to Ryle, this assumption is a basic 'category-mistake,' because it attempts to analyze the relation betwen 'mind' and 'body' as if they were terms of the same logical category. Furthermore, Ryle argues that traditional Idealism makes a basic 'category-mistake' by trying to reduce physical reality to the same status as mental reality, and that Materialism makes a basic 'category-mistake' by trying to reduce mental reality to the same status as physical reality.

    Read More

More about Brain Vs Materialism

Open Document