Consciousness: Qualia and Intentionality Flashcards
What is the difference between mental states and non-mental states?
they have different ontologies. Mental states such as my belief that it will rain tomorrow are subjective and private whereas non-mental states such as a piece of toast are objective and public.
What is Dualism?
This is the theory that there are some non-physical properties in addition to physical properties.
They believe that the mind is in some way independent of the physical. For dualists there is more to reality that just physical objects and/or properties.
Disagree with materialism/physicalism
Their ontology is twofold: The physical and the non-physical
What is Materialism/Physicalism?
All properties and entities that exist are physical
All phenomena including conciousness and the mind are nothing but material interactions
Monists - all that exists is physical objects and their physical properties.
Everything can be reduced to material descriptions.
What is Substance Dualism?
Substance dualists believe as well that that there are two types of entities, that non physical entities exist which possess these non-physical properties.
What is Property Dualism?
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What is the indivisibility argument for Dualism?
Descartes - the body is naturally divisible wheras the mind is entirely indivisible. When a piece of my body is taken off I am conscious that my mind is not connected. Thus the body and the mind do not connect.
“We cannot conceive of half a mind”
“It is one and the same mind that wills and understands and has sensory perceptions”
Thus the mind is immaterial.
What are possible responses to the indivisibility argument?
If the mind and body are separate, how can I send signals to the rest of my body to perform actions?
The mind and body might be separate just as my body and another person’s body are separate yet they are both physical.
There are many other things that are indivisible that are still physical such as a brain process, a game of football and fire.
Explain the doubt/conceivability argument?
Descartes’ Cogito ergo sum: I think therefore I am.
Even if I could not conceive of my body and could still conceive that I am aware and thinking. I am aware of my own mind. I cannot doubt the existence of my own mind because of introspection.
What are the possible responses to the doubt/conceivability argument?
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What is Qualia as a phenomenal character?
Qualia is your subjective, phenomenal experience personal to you. It is different to a simple description. It is the way you experience the experience. Personal, first hand.
What is Qualia as intrinsic non-representational properties?
Your experience is made up of different sense-data which make up your whole image of the world. Redness isn’t a picture but the combination of some colours can make a picture. Qualia make up the picture.
Dalmatian picture analogy. The intrinsic, non representational features of a painting like the blobs of paint on the canvas are the determinants of what it is like for me to have the experience.
