7.1 philosophy terms

dualism

dualism

the mind and body are separate entities, with a nonphysical mind and physical body

substance dualism

two distinct substances which are physical and nonphysical; non-physical substance is the immaterial soul, and the physical substance is all the material objects in the world

Plato, Descartes

property dualism

there is one kind of substance (physical substance); there are two different types of property (mental and physical)

hylomorphism

all substances are a combination of matter and form; cannot live with one without the other

Aristotle

materialism

only physical matter exists and that everything is explainable (actually or in principle); denies the existence of spiritual or metaphysical realities

physicalism

mental properties are nothing additional to the physical properties; having similar roles

eliminative materialism/eliminative physicalism

mental states (common sense beliefs) do not exist; eliminating our way of expressing mental life

Mind-Body Problem

questioning the relationship between the mind and the body, exploring if they are separate entities or interconnected

pure

knowledge that does not depend on the senses; produced according to a standard that is expected of it

soul as mind

soul refers to the immaterial essence of a person, encompassing their consciousness; compared to the mind which is the center of intellectual processes. The soul/mind is believed to be the seat of individuality and identity, influencing behavior and shaping one's perception of the world.

consciousness the “hard” problem

problem explaining why any physical state is conscious rather than unconscious; why and how humans have consciousness or subjective experiences

epiphenomenalism

mind is not reducible to material events, but it is not its own substance either. Our conscious minds do not affect the physical world; but physical states cause mental states and events

reductionism

take one theory to be reducible to some other theory

emergence

a novel property of a system or entity that arises when that system or entity has reached a certain level of complexity; it is distinct from the properties of the parts of the system from which it emerges

identity theory

relationship between mind and body; some types of mental states are identical with some types of brain states

functionalism

mental states are identified by what they do rather than what they’re made of

identity

anything has the relation of identity to itself, nothing else; concept of identity can change based on perspective*

the self

different definitions between Locke, Hume, Kant

Locke: thinking intelligent being; same thinking thing in different times and places

Hume: self is constantly changing, persisting

Kant: transcendental self; self beyond the self

psychological continuity of memory

sameness of memory is necessary for identity; if you remember yourself from a past time, you are that self (BBB Problems)**

Locke

psychological connection of memory

memory and the self are connected**

essentialism

human nature given to us by God; essential properties of a thing are the ones it needs to possess to be the thing it is

Aquinas

existentialism

human nature comes during life not from an external source (God); humans have no pregiven purpose or essence

Sartre, Kierkegaard

free will

ability to choose his or her own course of action; allows control of actions

libertarianism

morality comes from free will; individuals have rights against certain kinds of forcible interference on the part of others; incompatible

Aquinas; Sartre

soft determinism

freedom allows us to do what we want without interference, but our wants are determined by external events; causal determinism is true, but we still act as free; compatibilism

Hume, Augustine

hard determinism

all things have a cause; we are totally determined; each cause has a necessary consequence; determinism is not compatible with free will, and that there can be no freedom; incompatible

Laplace, d’Holbach

human agency/autonomy

individual’s capacity for self-determination or self-governance; decide for oneself and pursue a course of action in one’s life

causality

some things cause another, and causes necessitate certain effects; makes it possible to think of “external world”; universal causation

purpose

being directed towards a certain end; “meaning of life”

nihilism

belief that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated; condemns existence

Nietzsche

absurdism

universe is irrational and meaningless; trying to find meaning leads to conflict

Kierkegaard

authenticity

owning up to your self-defining choices; denotes the genuine, true state of human existence

qualia

private experience of conscious experience