Week 5

Should we, as human beings, think of ourselves as made out of two different substances, like Descartes argued? Or are you persuaded by the arguments of physicalism that we are purely physical beings?

If you agree with Descartes, how would you explain the fact that our mental life seems to be very closely connected to a physical organ, namely the brain. If you agree with physicalism, how do you explain the fact that our mental life seems to be like nothing else in the physical world (think of how unique something like consciousness is, for example).

Complicated topic, but must disagree with Descartes. I’m going with science on this. I believe that physicalism is a more plausible explanation because we usually go with what we know and what we can prove instead of making assumptions. I think that consciousness is a physical property. To me I think that dualism sounds better to most people due to their religious beliefs. Life after death, our spirits coming back, dreaming, induce comma while going under surgery, just to name a few. For me to think that consciousness leaves our body during these events it’s hard to believe.