Lecture 7 Flashcards
phenomenal consciousness
part of our conscious experiences, characterized by what-it-is-likeness (qualia), which is the subjective character of experience
the explanatory gap
the problem that arises when a materialistic theory tries to explain qualia or phenomenal consciousness
- the gap between scientific explanation of consciousness and how we actually talk about it
materialistic thoery of phenomenal consciousness
provides a purely physical explanation of the qualia, which misses the what-it-is-likeness
what are the 2 interpretations of the explanatory gap?
- epistemological problem
- metaphysical problem
epistemological problem
a materialistic explanation is possible, however, the problem comes because of the way we think of the world. we still lack cognitive capacities to be able to explain consciousness
metaphysical problem
a materialistic explanation is not possible. the gap arises because of how the world actually is, thus, qualia are not physical
- suggests that materialism is wrong
the hard problem of consciousness
how can a materialist theory of the conscious mind explain phenomenal consciousness?
arguments against materialism
- what is it like to be a bat?
- Mary the super-scientist
- phenomenal zombies
- we are just not smart enough
“what is it like to be a bat?” argument
- bases itself on the statement that if materialism is objective, it cannot explain the subjective character of experience
- it is possible to make an explanation of how echolocation works, but impossible to tell us anything about what it is really like to be a bat
- only poses a challenge to materialism, as it only presents an epistemological problem
“Mary the super-scientist” argument
- thought experiment: Mary knows everything there is to know about color, but Mary has never seen color
- if she is presented with a banana, will she be able to tell that it is not yellow, or would she think that this is what it is like to see yellow?
- if our intuition tells us that Mary learned something new, then materialism cannot be the complete explanation of consciousness
- only poses a challenge to materialism, as the thought experiment depends on our intuition which can be different for everyone
“phenomenal zombies” argument - David Chalmers
- thought experiment: we conceive of a world that is a perfect copy of our own, in which there are no phenomenal properties
- phenomenal zombies are like us, but have no phenomenal consciousness
- suggests that phenomenal traits are not physical traits, therefore, materialism must be false
- only poses a challenge to materialism, as if we stick to materialism, we can say that whatever is physically identical to us must also be phenomenally identical
why are phenomenal zombies important
- a good materialist theory should be able to explain why phenomenal zombies are conceivable, but not possible, which is a huge challenge for materialism
- they are un-intuitive which gives rise to intuitions against dualism
- there are also zombie-like cases in real life:
- homicidal somnambulism - committing a homicide while sleepwalking
- blindsight - unaware of the visual stimuli to which patients respond
“we are just not smart enough” argument
- states that a materialistic explanation of the conscious mind is possible but because there is an epistemological gap, we just do not have the right cognitive capacities
- however, there are 2 ways to explore the mind-body relation:
- brain and neuroscience - would mean that mental concepts are not necessary so there is no reason to talk about consciousness
- mind and introspections - would mean that physical concepts are not necessary, so we would not talk about brain and body
the natural method
Flanagan says we can address the mind-body problem in an interdisciplinary way - by combining the methods
- take phenomenology, psychology, cognitive science, and nueroscience seriously
- only when we combine knowledge from all disciplines would we be able to answer questions
the Penifield homonculus
one example in which combination of disciplines proved to be the most effective way of gaining knowledge
- combined brain research and the phenomenology of Penfield’s patients
- result is the discovery of the neural areas that were responsible for motor and sensory functions
depression
the combination between the phenomenological character of depression and neurological research helped in making treatments for depression
access consciousness
the availability for use in reasoning and rationally guiding speech and action
reflective consciousness
higher-order reflection about consciousness or thinking about thinking
quale
what something is like
intuition pumps
thought experiments designed to draw intuitions to the surface
