Skip to content
Carmelics
TopicsThinkersChangesContributorsLoading account…

    Carmelics

    A reasoning platform. Break down any belief into clear reasons, explore both sides, and weigh the evidence honestly.

    Navigate

    • Topics
    • Search
    • Recent Changes
    • Contribute
    • How It Works
    • Glossary
    • Thinkers
    • Contributors
    • About
    • Statistics
    • Terms
    • Privacy

    Database

    Statements
    —
    Perspectives
    —
    Topics
    —

    Press ? for keyboard shortcuts

    LoyalLoyalJusticeJustice
    Made withinDC&Austin
    Statements
    321,452
    Perspectives
    108,905
    Topics
    42
    The mind is distinct from the body — Carmelics
    Home/Consciousness & Mind
    HistoryEditSee Inverse

    The mind is distinct from the body

    Consciousness & Mind
    ?Rate how convincing each reason is below to see the overall strength.
    1 reason for
    2 reasons against

    Reasons For

    1 perspective
    Reason for
    ?
    • 1.The essence of mind is thought, and a thinking thing is unextended
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.The essence of matter is extension, and extended things cannot think
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.Clear and distinct intellectual perceptions of the essences of mind and matter establish these essences as genuinely distinct
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reasons Against

    2 perspectives
    Reason against 1 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Mental states such as pain, fear, and desire are systematically caused by and causally efficacious upon bodily states.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.If mind and body were genuinely distinct substances, no causal interaction between them would be intelligible, as Descartes himself could not explain the pineal gland mechanism.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.A theory of mind that cannot account for mind-body causation is explanatorily defective and should be rejected in favor of a monist alternative.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reason against 2 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Neuroscience demonstrates that every discriminable mental state corresponds to a specific, identifiable neural state or process.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.The identity theory (Place, Smart, Armstrong) holds that this systematic correlation is best explained by strict type or token identity, not mere correlation between distinct substances.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.Descartes' argument from conceivability—that mind can be clearly conceived without body—does not establish real distinctness, since conceivability does not entail metaphysical possibility, as Kripke's work on necessary a posteriori truths demonstrates.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Sign in or register to share your perspective on this statement.

    Next step

    Based on where you are in your exploration

    Strongest counterpoint
    Explore the most compelling reason on the other side.

    Topics

    Consciousness & Mind

    Connections

    1 topic

    Truth & Knowledge1 linked

    Related

    A theory of mind that cannot account for mind-body causation is explanatorily de...Clear and distinct intellectual perceptions of the essences of mind and matter e...Descartes' argument from conceivability—that mind can be clearly conceived witho...If mind and body were genuinely distinct substances, no causal interaction betwe...
    +5 moreShow less
    Mental states such as pain, fear, and desire are systematically caused by and ca...Neuroscience demonstrates that every discriminable mental state corresponds to a...The essence of matter is extension, and extended things cannot thinkThe essence of mind is thought, and a thinking thing is unextendedThe identity theory (Place, Smart, Armstrong) holds that this systematic correla...

    Similar

    The human mind is a substance really distinct from the body.90%If mind and body are the same thing conceived in two different ways, t...85%The mind is distinct from matter and only an immaterial substance is c...85%The essence of the soul (mind) is to think, and the soul is entirely d...84%

    Source

    AI-extracted1/3 agreementValid
    SEP: descartes
    View source passageHide passage
    In the Meditations, Descartes changed the structure of the argument. In the Second Meditation, he established that he could not doubt the existence of himself as a thinking thing, but that he could doubt the existence of matter. However, he explicitly refused to use this situation to conclude that his mind was distinct from body, on the grounds that he was still ignorant of his nature (7:27). Then, in the Sixth Meditation, having established, to his satisfaction, the mark of truth, he used that
    Extraction notes

    Validity: Extracted via Max plan + API grounding/validity checks

    Details

    Type
    claim
    Perspectives
    3 (1 for, 2 against)
    Edits
    1 edit