Evaluating The Mind-Body Problem

Improved Essays
Show More
Evaluating the Mind-Body Problem
Different philosophers analyze and present their view on the mind-body problem presented by Rene Descartes. The most influential in her analysis is Eve Browning Cole because she offers a detailed description of the mistakes Descartes made while writing his meditations. She looks at different aspects and even gives the feminist account of the problem which is something Gilbert Ryle ignored to do.
Descartes presents to us the mind-body problem in his meditations. He believes that the mind and body are different and do not influence each other. In his meditations, he organized his beliefs in a hierarchy. His thoughts and mind are given priority and are the foundation of his belief. Next he is sure about the existence

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    Descartes Fifth Meditation: The Ontological Argument For God
    • 1477 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Descartes Fifth Meditation: The Ontological Argument For God

    Descartes fifth Meditation presents the Ontological Argument for God’s Existence. Though many people find Descartes Ontological Argument for God’s Existence to be an unpersuasive and weak argument, I find it is a very strong argument that provides a strong foundation and argument for God’s existence. In this paper I plan to elaborate upon Descartes fifth meditation and slightly over the first and third. After this I will then explain its strong points and weaknesses. I believe Descartes Ontological Argument for God’s Existence in Meditation five to be a strong and persuasive argument.…

    • 1477 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Descartes Argument Of Meditation Summary
    • 1946 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Descartes Argument Of Meditation Summary

    Descartes Meditations takes us on an intellectual, meditative, spiritual journey inward, questioning what exactly, if anything at all, we can know with certainty. Descartes was active in physics and mathematics, as he was interested in the potential of science to give us the truth about the world. Descartes believed that knowledge has secure foundations and and that all other knowledge rests upon these foundations. Hence, in order to establish what is “firm and constant in the sciences”, it is necessary to establish the very foundations of all knowledge so that he could use these principles to base the reasoning process upon. For Descartes, this meant removing all sensory prejudice.…

    • 1946 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    How Does Descartes Prove That God Exist
    • 1006 Words
    • 5 Pages

    How Does Descartes Prove That God Exist

    What steps does Descartes take to prove his existence and that God exists? (one of the proofs). Discuss whether his reasoning is sound and convincing. In this essay, I will discuss how after the first and second meditation, Descartes knows that he exists and that he is a thinking thing.…

    • 1006 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Cartesian Dualism
    • 2454 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Cartesian Dualism

    Are mind and body essentially different? [Descartes, Conway, Cavendish] In 17th century philosophy, the mind-body issue surfaced many circulating viewpoints as to what the real relationship between the mind and the physical world is. This continuing dilemma brings up questions that have ongoing answers regarding if the mind and body are two substances or not, and how exactly the mind and body are related to each other. I am choosing to take a monist standpoint in this paper, expressing that the mind and body are in fact one substance and are not inherently different: matter cannot be infinitely divisible, there is no source of activity in the nature of matter being extended, and other body parts besides the mind have knowledge.…

    • 2454 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Skinner's Theory Of Mind-Body Dualism
    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Skinner's Theory Of Mind-Body Dualism

    In philosophy, a theory that includes the viewing of the the mind and body as being separate kinds of substances or natures is known as mind- body dualism. This stance implies that the mind and body not only differ in meaning but refer to different kinds of entities. Thus, a person that proposes the concept of dualism would oppose any theory that identifies mind with the brain, conceived as a physical operant. Descartes reaches this conclusion by arguing that the nature of the mind is completely and utterly distinct from that of the body, and therefore it is possible for one to exist without the other. This argument gives rise to the famous problem of mind-body causal interaction that are still commonly debated today: how can the mind cause…

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Gilbert Rylee The Myth Analysis
    • 1069 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Gilbert Rylee The Myth Analysis

    The reading one has chosen to critically analyse is Gilbert Ryle’s Descartes ' Myth. Ryle is attempting here to undermine what he dubs ‘The Official Doctrine’, which is the idea that the generally accepted answer to the mind-body problem is that of Cartesian Dualism, as presented by Descartes in the 17th Century. Ryle refers to the general acceptance as ‘The Dogma of The Ghost Machine’, as the Cartesian theory makes humans out to be just a ghost (mind) controlling a machine (body). Ryle’s main point of argument is not to simply debunk some factors or issues in the language of the theory, but to prove it entirely false, not in its details but in the principle itself.…

    • 1069 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Difference Between Materialism And Dualism
    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Difference Between Materialism And Dualism

    They are unable to provide enough examples as to how the mind interacts with the body to create movement, or having to force oneself to stay awake even though the body is beginning to fall asleep. For Descartes he came up with the idea that the communication happens in the pineal gland of the brain, but his explanation was vague and he did not go into many details, allowing it to simply be an unsolved mystery. Descartes strong belief in dualism would cause him to have an objection to the materialistic views, he might argue that materialistic views could not occur because the mind can exist without the body, and the body without the mind. Gilbert Ryle was a philosopher who argued against Descartes with “the dogma of the ghost in the machine”, stating that the mind-body dualism was confusing the separate entities as being compatible. Descartes argument could be flawed because of the movement of the body, as to be able to cause movement the mind has to think about it and communicate to the body to produce that movement in the…

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Descartes Third Meditation Analysis
    • 1901 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Descartes Third Meditation Analysis

    Once he has cleared his mind of all things that may be false he began to build off of the things that he can be sure of. The only other thing that he has decided is true prior to the third meditation is the fact that he exists, if not as a body at least as a thinking being. So using what he has built up so far he begins to use his ability of reasoning in order to determine the existence of God. Using the argument that if he has an idea of something it must be true he reasons within his own mind that God must exist.…

    • 1901 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Impact Of Descartes On Psychology
    • 938 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Impact Of Descartes On Psychology

    He argued that the mind is responsible for thinking processes while the body is responsible for much of life’s functions, including movements. This suggested that some movements are not a result of the mind, but rather a reflex of the body. He ultimately established that the brain is important for behavior and thinking. This further supported Descartes claim that the mind and body are separate and fueled later research on the nervous system and its relationship to the mind and brain. It can also be argued that these contributions paved the path for modern behavioral psychology and more specifically the concept of stimulus-response.…

    • 938 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    The Implications Of Dualism And Rene Descartes's Substance Dualism
    • 1240 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Implications Of Dualism And Rene Descartes's Substance Dualism

    Introduction The argument whether or not the mind and the body are distinct substances raises a still on-going debate. In this essay, I proceed to give evidence as to why the Cartesian dualism theory is flawed. First, I am going to introduce a few of Descartes’ arguments and his position on the matter. Then, I will try to pick his most appealing argument and put it up against logical reasoning and other philosophers’ viewpoints. Finally, I am going to conclude how Rene Descartes proposes fallacious arguments which object his mind-body problem.…

    • 1240 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Princess Elizabeth's Criticism Of Cartesian Dualism
    • 1031 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Princess Elizabeth's Criticism Of Cartesian Dualism

    For instance, Princess Elizabeth’s understanding of causation cannot explain all causal interactions (e.g. the relation of time and the body which causes the process of aging). Therefore, there are some things that we cannot truly comprehend. One of those things, according to Descartes, is the causal relationship between the mind and the body.…

    • 1031 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Descartes Rationalism And The Strengths Of Cartesian Dualism
    • 1950 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Descartes Rationalism And The Strengths Of Cartesian Dualism

    Cartesian Dualism, a theory coined by Rene Descartes and examined within his sixth mediation of Meditations of First Philosophy, explains and theorizes the idea of the mind and body as two distinct substances. The theory states that the mind is not merely a physical brain as another organ of the body, but rather the non-materialistic mind and material body are two different entities. The body, having elements of extension have a reality with spatial relevance as it entails form, texture, location and weight. In comparison, the mind has non-spatial components that consist of humans’ realm of thought as it includes consciousness, images, emotions beliefs and desires. Cartesian Dualism presents many simple and seemingly rational arguments such…

    • 1950 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Compare And Contrast Aquinas And Descartes
    • 1248 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Compare And Contrast Aquinas And Descartes

    Throughout his “Meditations” Descartes will demonstrate that he is breaking away from the traditional way of thinking and metaphysics. And, throughout the text Descarte will lay out a foundation to a different way of thinking. One in which one does not solely rely on the senses to know things, but instead rely on an inspection of the mind. But, this conflicts with other philosophers of Descartes time, and it conflicts with what is being taught within the schools, Around Descartes time, many of the schools were using the writings of Aquinas and therefore Aristotle to teach, and they had become almost the center of philosophy. In this paper I will discuss and explain how Descartes’ views are different from the medieval and classical views of Aquinas and Aristotle.…

    • 1248 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Descartes Mind And Body
    • 499 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Essay On Descartes Mind And Body

    He says “the body by its very nature is always devisable, while the mind is utterly indivisible.” He then continues and gives an example of how if you were to cut off a limb, something has been taken away from the body, but nothing has been taken away from the mind, thus proving that the mind is indivisible. After reading his meditations and understanding his observations, I have come to agreement with Descartes’s conclusion that the mind and body are distinctly disconnected and that without the other each can…

    • 499 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Rene Descartes: Relationship Between The Mind And The Body
    • 1742 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Rene Descartes: Relationship Between The Mind And The Body

    Philosophy 001 Project 3: Descartes 1) Cartesian dualism refers to the philosophical view proposed by the French mathematician and philosopher Rene Descartes that describes and explains the relationship of the mind and body. According to this philosophical view, the Mind and the Body are two completely separate and different substances capable of interacting with one another. Descartes asserted that “[that is, [the] mind, by which I am what I am], is entirely and truly distinct from [the] body, and may exist without it.” (Descartes). Descartes described the mind as an immaterial substance whose “essence consists only in being a thinking thing [or a substance whose whole essence or nature is merely thinking]” (Descartes).…

    • 1742 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More

Related Topics

Ready To Get Started?
Discover
Company
Follow
©2024 Cram.com
Privacy Policy |  About Ads |  Site Map |  Advertise  | 
  • Cookie Settings