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what is dualism
everyone is made of two separate substances - we are not just physical
what is materialism
everyone is just made of one substance: physical matter, which can explain consciousness
Summarise Plato’s beliefs on the soul
the soul exists eternally in the world of the forms before and after life
this allows humans to have innate knowledge, which is available for recollection, about the world of the forms
what does the story of Socrates questioning a Slave Boy show
innate ideas, accessed through reason, provide timeless truths
what are the three aspects of Plato’s tripartite view of the soul
appetite, emotion, reason
summarise Aristotle’s view on the soul
the soul is a “psyche” (a real thing) that remains unchanging as the body changes
includes the matter of the body as well as its functions and capabilities
living things have souls while non-living things do not, and this is what separates them
according to Aristotle, what type of souls do plants have?
vegetative: they are capable of nourishment and reproduction
according to Aristotle, what type of souls do animals have?
perceptive: they have senses to experience and react to the world and they can tell pleasure from pain
according to Aristotle, what type of souls do humans have?
the higher type of soul: the capability to reason and tell right from wrong
Aristotle quote about his knowledge of the soul
“to attain any assured knowledge of the soul is one of the most difficult things in the world”
what kind of view did Descartes have on SMaB
substance dualist
what is Cartesian doubt
Descartes’ approach to reality. he considered everything he knew, and rejected anything about which there cannot be certainty
Descartes quote on himself as a thinking thing
“cogito ergo sum”: I think therefore I am
why did Descartes know he existed
he cannot doubt that he is thinking. he therefore must exist as a “thinking thing”
why, in Descartes view, must the mind and body be separate? what law does this employ?
he knew his mind must exist, but he cannot know that his body exists. they have different properties and therefore must be different substances: the Leibniz Law
where did Descartes propose the mind and body interacts
the Pineal gland, which we now know secretes melatonin and other hormones
Which type of materialism did Mill believe in? summarise it
“emergent materialism”: as physical things become more complex, new properties emerge from them which cannot be reduced to the material. the mind has its own existence, but is not entirely separate from the physical body
describe Descartes three waves of doubt, in order
senses cannot be trusted as they sometimes are deceitful
one may think they’re awake whilst they’re dreaming
an evil demon could be controlling the mind which makes all beliefs false
who proposed the “category error”, and in which book?
Ryle in The Concept of Mind
what is the “category error”? give one of Ryle’s examples
talking of a self beyond the body is a misuse of language and does not fit with science
e.g. “The University” is not one thing but made up of students, teachers, name, buildings etc
quote from Dawkins’ The Selfish Gene
“survival machines got bigger and more elaborate… now they go by the name of genes and we are their survival machines”
quote from Dawkins’ River out of Eden
“life is just bytes and bytes and bytes of digital information”
is Dawkins reductionist?
yes
what is a non-religious way to explain human consciousness
evolutionary advantage as we can make deliberate decisions. caused by electro-chemical events in the brain.
describe Dawkins’ soul 1
a distinctive, supernatural part of a person which survives after death. Dawkins rejects this
describe Dawkins’ soul 2
an Aristotelian view, describing the soul as someone’s personality and identity. no life after death. Dawkins accepts this
quote from Aristotle showing the inseparability of soul and body
“it indubitably follows that the soul is inseparable from the body”
quote from Dawkins arguing against the need for a metaphysical explanation of consciousness
“science has either killed the soul or is in the process of doing so”
Susan Blackmore (materialist) on the soul
“the last great mystery in science”
Chalmers’ on dualism
dualism provides an explanation for the “hard problem of consciousness” which materialism does not convincingly do
C.S. Lewis on dualism
human capacity to be moral actors shows their souls have value