Essay about Descartes Theory of Substance Dualism

Descartes Theory of Substance Dualism Throughout the history of man, philosophers have tried to come up with an explanation of where our minds, or consciousness, came from and how we are able to have a nonphysical characteristic of ourselves. Does our physical brain automatically give us nonphysical characteristics like feelings, thoughts, and desires or is there something else there, the mind, that interacts with our bodies and makes us feel, think, and desire? Also, is the mind the only nonphysical entity in our universe or do other entities exist such as ghosts or souls? One man came up with a theory to explain the two different properties in our universe in which he called Dualism. Hopefully with his theory of†¦show more content†¦Therefore, humans are composed of two types of substance: physical and nonphysical. According to Descartes, our minds and bodies causally interact with one another almost all of the time. Meaning that events and states in our mind can cause physical events in our bodies and vice versa. For example, a tack puncturing your foot (a physical event) causes you to feel pain (a mental event) and causes you to say ouch, (a physical event) (Barcalow, pg. 72). As a result, the term Interactionism was used to explain the relation between the physical and mental. Descartes theory of Substance Dualism was his best way of explaining human life and how our minds are able to interact with our bodies. Of course, not everyone is going to agree with Descartes theory. There are many objections one can make about Substance Dualism, but mainly there are three. First of all, some believe causal interaction between the body and mind is a physical phenomenon. For example, throwing a baseball is the result of ones arm being swung back in a smooth motion and using force to release the ball (science has proven that force is physical). What caused the arm to throw the baseball? The muscles in the arm contracted, thus the arm raised. The electrical impulses that originated in the brain told the arm to throw the ball. Some peopleShow MoreRelatedFor Years, Philosophers Have Debated The Mind-Body Problem,1195 Words   |  5 Pageswor ld. Philosopher Descartes believed in substance dualism, the belief that the mind and the body are two different things. In this essay, I will examine Descartes’ substance dualism theory. First, I will review Descartes’s theory and reasons that support it. Then, I will review objections with Descartes’s argument. After that, I will imagine how Descartes would respond to these objections. Finally, I will conclude with an overall assessment. Descartes’ substance dualism theory was formed in theRead MoreDescartes Dualism And The Mind Body Theory1322 Words   |  6 PagesDescartes’ Dualism Rene Descartes dualism states that the mind and body are separate entities. The mind is a nonphysical, non-spatial substance; the mind and brain are separate existences, the brain is a part of the physical body and serves as a connection between the body and mind. Dualism is a hot topic of argument on whether the theory holds any validity or if it holds any truth. However, Cartesian dualism is a credible theory and has a lot of support to verify it. One major point in DescartesRead MoreThe Mind / Brain Identity Theory1718 Words   |  7 PagesDescartes’s Dualism of substances, which became one of the most lasting legacies in his philosophy. However, a scientifically stronger interpretation was advanced through the Mind/Brain Identity theory. Prior to discussing how Elliott Sober’s presentation of the Identity Theory is philosophically stronger than Dualism, I will begin by evaluating the philosophical perspective of Dualism; I will examine the distinction between mental and physical substance and assess the strengths of dualism. I will alsoRead MoreIs Dualism Best? The Nature Of Consciousness? Essay1070 Words   |  5 PagesStudent ID Number: 00180694 November 2rd, 2016 Philosophy 101: Introduction to Philosophy Professor Bayne Dualism Best Explains the Nature of Consciousness The three theories we have discussed so far are the dualism theory of Plato and Descartes, the Aristotelian theory, and the Physicalism (identity) theory of Place and Strong. The identity of consciousness means that if you have the same consciousness, you are the same person, and if not conscience, you are not the same person. The thing thatRead MoreRenà © Descartes and Thomas Hobbes Essay1497 Words   |  6 PagesDuring the sixteen hundreds, the French philosopher Renà © Descartes laid the foundations for the beginnings of Cartesian Dualism. In contrast, the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes argued against dualism in favor of materialism. Recently, Cartesian Dualism, and dualism in general has fallen out of favor as materialism arose as a more plausible and explanatory theory regarding the interrelationships between body and mind. The translation Descartes’ writing in the Meditations is far more cryptic than Hobbes’Read MoreThe Mind-Body Problem Essay957 Words    |  4 Pagesand the body. Theorists, such as Renà © Descartes and Thomas Nagel, have written extensively on the problem but they have many dissenting beliefs. Descartes, a dualist, contends that the mind and body are two different substances that can exist separately. Conversely, Nagel, a dual aspect theorist, contends that the mind and body are not substances but different properties. However, although Nagel illustrates the problems with Descartes= theory, Nagel=s theory runs into the problem of panpsychism.Read MoreThe Theory Of The Mind Body Dualism1232 Words   |  5 PagesRenà © Descartes was a French mathematician, scientist, and philosopher of the 16th Century, who, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica, â€Å"was one of the first to abandon scholastic Aristotelianism and created the first version of the modern mind-body dualism or emotion† (Encyclopedia Britannica). Born on March 31, 1596, he was dubbed as the Father of Modern Philosophy. His theory on the mind- body dualism, also known as Cartesian Dualism, created a stem of the modern problem of the relationship betweenRead MoreAnalysis Of Elisabeth s Criticism Of Descartes Mind Body Dualism1398 Words   |  6 PagesElisabeth’s Criticism of Descartes’ Mind-Body Dualism Renà © Descartes’ seventeenth century philosophy receives much of the credit for the basis of modern philosophy, specifically his argument that the body and the mind are completely separate substances, each with its own independence from the other, also known as dualism. Descartes was educated in the Aristotelian and Greek tradition, and those ideas influenced his dualist thought. In Meditations, Descartes focused on dualism in the context of humanRead MoreRealism : Reality And Dualism1340 Words   |  6 PagesTeena Lin PHI 1500 Fall 2017 Final Paper Reality is Dualism There are currently four major theories about the nature of reality and substance— materialism/physicalism, idealism, transcendental idealism, and dualism. Materialism is the theory that there is only the physical and material world. Idealism takes the position that reality is made up of ideas and immaterial. Transcendental idealism holds the idea that our experience of things are shaped by how they appear to us and not by what they areRead MoreArgument of Dualism1036 Words   |  5 PagesArguments of Dualism Dualism is the theory that mind and matter are two distinct things. The main argument for dualism is that facts about the objective external world of particles and fields of force, as revealed by modern physical science, are not facts about how things appear from any particular point of view, whereas facts about subjective experience are precisely about how things are from the point of view of individual conscious subjects. They have to be described in the first person as