Problems of compound materialism Flashcards
What are they? (3)
Compound - partly immaterial and partly material - soul and body. Pure immaterialism - no material parts. You are your soul - have no location in space. 3) Ben is taller than Cat - saying Ben’s body is taller than Cat’s.
Compound immaterialism and apperance of materiality (2)
CI - don’t have shape, size or mass. If something is combination is 17 and Eiffel tower wouldn’t say has physical properties in same way e tower has. Compound like this. 2) Have a visible part and invisible part. Just like as a body having a foot shaped part but that doesn’t mean are foot shaped.
The appearance of thinking (5)
Ci - not conscious or intelligent but just have a conscious intelligent part. Thinking not mine but soul’s. 2) However awareness of the thoughts would be mine because we are aware when our ‘soul’ thinks. Yet to have this thought of awareness shows you must be thinking. 3) Ci - belief that i am thinking is false. When the soul thinks I or me it does not refer to itself but to the soul-body compound which is not thinking. 4) However when soul says it believes that it is a soul - this belief is true. But soul’s belief is my belief also - so entail that belief that i am soul would be true - contradict soul is only part of me. 5) CD - conflicts with word ‘person’ - intelligent and self conscious. But compound does not have these properties - only soul - implies i am not a person…
Thinking-brain problem (3)
Compound logic for materialists - my brain that is intelligent and self conscious - so i am not a person but have a person in part. 2) but no reason for materialists to accept this - does not imply what does my thinking is part of me rather than whole human. My ears are not directly involved in walking so true walker is not whole human but just bit involved in walking. Not case - wrong to suggest soul is just part of me. 3) Avoid problem - compound is the thinking thing and not soul - cooperative dualism - has problems.
Disembodied survival problem (3)
Surviving in a disembodied state looks impossible. As i am not a soul but compound so would not be able to survive destruction of body. 2) Why could i not become my soul? Impossible for me to become a thing that already exists but is distinct from me. Incompatible histories - impossible to become ronaldo - who has been a pro for 20 years and be me who has been a pro for one week. if had been pro for one week wouldn’t be me. Also i was a sheffield student - ronaldo wasn’t - can’t be both. If was wouldn’t be ronaldo. 3) follows cannot surive destruction of body - soul outlives me…
Amputation paradox (4)
Imagine changed relation after disembodiment - from part to whole. If was possible than would be possible to imagine if you had your hand amputated - it could become you - just like compound to soul.2) However which one would be you? Physically identical as shown by duplication argument.3)Another problem - Would also require a soul compound - absurd consequence. 4) Ci say you coincide with your disembodied soul in same way body would coincide with left hand - yet soul does not have spatial location and not made of physical matter - hard to suggest how could coincide with anything.
