Though Descartes was able to portray how the Mind and Body are two separate things, there were lots of rejections regarding his theory. I have my own opinion on Dualism and how Descartes could be wrong, as well as my own opinion on the three rejections I refer to in this paper. I will also talk about how there are similarities in the arguments and how they contradict each other. One way is Radical Behaviorism. This rejection does not completely reject Dualism, but one side of the theory. Another rejection is the Identity Theory. Instead of denying either side Dualism, it says that the mind and body are one entity. The third rejection is Functionalism. How this rejection works is to think that the brain is like a computer, and a mind is created by the relations between each part in the brain. How radical behaviorism works is how John Watson and B. F. Skinner explained it. He stated that behaviorism in the form of science, events that cannot be physically witnessed to be excluded from scientific study. By doing this, this rejects the mind part of Dualism because behaviorists say that the mind cannot be studied if it is not physically visible. The only problem I find in this is that, if the mind cannot be studied, then how does one explain how we turn into the people that we are? If we are just happening to grow into our personalities without any way to explain how we attained our habits or mentalities; that does not make sense. Many times, there are a lot of small factors when growing up that make us into the person we are today. Skinner often jumps between the use of the word “soul” instead of self-consciousness, but just because, “nobody has ever touched a soul, seen one in a test tube, or has in any other way come into relationship with it,” does not mean we cannot try to study what a soul is. I also believe that a soul and self-consciousness is very different, because having a soul is very religion backed, in my opinion, whereas, self-consciousness is to be aware of what we are doing and having such is what keeps many humans from doing things they believe are wrong. The only reason why this soft rejection may portray what Descartes is trying to say better, is because it narrows down what can be studied down to just one subject, even though it completely ignores the other. The Identity Theory is what they claim is the most powerful rejection of dualism. What the Identity Theory does instead of rejecting the mind and body argument, is that it says that the body and mental events, are identical. The reason why this theory is more plausible than Descartes’ Mind and Body theory is because instead of having two separate entities moving to become what is a human being, it claims both as the same. Scientists believe that feelings like, “want,” “believes,” and “loves,” can be explained by studying the brain and the chemical connection within the brain. I believe this argument is quite feasible. The only thing that bothers me is that, for example, sometimes, we do not know why we start falling in love with another person. Sometimes, it can just spring up naturally, or you could be physically attracted to them. I think, that even if scientists study “love,” that they will never be able to figure out how it works. The brain has so many particles inside of it, I believe it is impossible to figure out how to study a brain while somebody is alive. The reason why, I feel, is emotions like love or want, do not happen instantaneously. Sometimes, it can happen in a short time, but I believe there is usually a trigger that can cause someone to fall in love. Functionalism is a rejection where the brain is not what causes our actions, but rather, the relations between each part in our body. Scientists believe that in the future, that it will be possible to create a human mind out of a computer. Of course, some scientists do not believe this and they believe that our mind is a function of the neurological activity in our
The Mind-Body Problem Lindsey Gama Westminster College The Mind-Body Problem In a universe composed of matter and energy, why is there such aWhat is consciousness? There seems to be no single answer that explains the phenomenon of mind. The mind-body problem does not have one set solution; in fact there are many possible solutions that could potentially be correct. Two of the most well known theories are dualism and monism, both of which have many sub theories. People…
Title Deborah L Jones Philosophy 106 Abstract The mind body problem. Title of Paper I’ve always wondered how our minds work. Although I’ve thought about it before; I hadn’t pondered on it until I took philosophy 106. Then I started thinking….What causes us to think, to memorize, to like, or to dislike something? I know I have a body with a brain made up of neurons. Somewhere within these neurons there is something called a conscious (mind); it is what allows me to think, and take action, so…
Mind–body problem Mind–body problem within philosophy scrutinizes the correlation linking brain and issue, and in specific the link between perception and the mind (Pecorino, 2000). Feelings within individual’s psychoanalysis mind like the irrelevant information within the brain. Consequently, this is observed like an ordinary information processor. According to Professor Philip Pecorino, brainpower can be referred as software within the mind's hardware. In addition, "stuff" of brain is untainted…
The body and mind are both different & separated elements. Descartes explains that he has sensed his head, hands, feet and the other physical objects of his body. The body alone can be affected by sensations which may be harmful or beneficial which relate to sensations that result in pleasure and pain. Along with these emotions or sensations Descartes further explains his physical presence when he is made aware of other experiences such as hunger, thirst and emotions of joy and anger. All these…
Application of Pure Reason Shows the Superiority of the Understanding of Our Minds In his Meditations I and II the arguments made by Rene Descartes lead him to the conclusion that the human mind is better known than the body. I will defend Descartes argument of the human mind being better known than the body by proving that the senses of the body possess the capability of being deceptive, that the existence of the mind is impossible to doubt, and that the only effective way to achieve absolute…
Individual Assignment Week 2 Mind-Body and the Meaning of Life Paper Quandra Johnson Philosophy\ 443 October 28, 2013 Dr. Shaun Herness The religions of ancient Egypt have their history rooted in creation myths. These myths were derived from deification of mortals who were great rulers. The ruler, who would become the Egyptian Christ like figure, was known as King Horus. King Horus came from the Southern part of Africa with a small…
Section 2.1 - The Ghost in the Machine: Mind as Soul 1. Modern science has shown that what goes on in our bodies can be explained in physical terms, as the result of various electrochemical or biomechanical interactions. But what about what goes on in our minds? Can our thoughts be explained physically? 2. Theories of Reality: Idealism: the doctrine that all that exists are minds and their contents. Materialism: the doctrine that all that exists are material objects. Dualism: the doctrine that…
Using mind body connection The mind is a powerful tool. Athletes who are able to effectively use their mind have more success than those who cannot. Athletic performance can actually be improved using the connection between the mind and the body. That mind-body connection has given athletes positive reproducible results time and time again. The only barrier in the way of the athlete is learning the process that improves athletic performance by enabling the mind-body connection. Our minds tell…
1984: Government's Attempt to Control The Mind and Bodies of Its Citizens The novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is an American classic which explores the human mind when it comes to power, corruption, control, and the ultimate utopian society. Orwell indirectly proposes that power given to the government will ultimately become corrupt and they will attempt to force all to conform to their one set standard. He also sets forth the idea that the corrupted government will attempt to…
Health: overall well-being of your body , mind, and your relationships with other people. life expectancy:the # of years a person can expect to live. quality of life : the degree of total satisfaction that a person gets from life. Goal :result that a person aims for and works hard to reach. physical health: aspect of health that refers to how well your body functions. When you are physically healthy, you have enough energy to carry out everyday tasks.mental health: state of being comfortable with…