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Mind and Body A philosophical view
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The human mind and body work together in an intricate partnership yet are separate and distinguishable from one another. ... I think that Descartes gave the most thought to the issue of mind versus body, however some of Hume’s ideas also appear to be arguing the mind/body question as well. Descartes compares the nature of each, while Hume’s theory of sensation and perception seem to also explain the nature of both the body and the mind.
The arguments concerning the body and the mind are presented as dualism and divisibility. Dualism simply states that the mind and body are separate things because we can perceive of our bodies without taking into consideration our minds, and vice versa. Since we can “clearly and distinctly” have thoughts about each one – body and mind – independent of the other, then they must be different from one another. Divisibility gives further evidence that the mind and body are distinctive from one another in that one is divisible while the other is not. The body is obviously divisible into many parts, while the mind is not at all divisible. The body and the mind are therefore obviously not the same, because one thing cannot be opposite of another and yet be the same.
If the body and the mind are separate things, it would seem reasonable to say that they can be separated into the two things that they are, yet to think of a mind without a body has a certain science-fiction ring to it. ... The motion in our brains sends signals to the mind to think certain thoughts such as pain, pleasure, hunger, or thirst. The senses of the human body cause the motions of the brain through the central nervous system.
When we step on a nail, it is the nerves that send signals from the foot to the brain, and the brain then signals the mind, which responds with the thought of pain. Therefore, the brain is a sort of middleman between the mind and the body. This seems to lead to a type of cause and effect relationship existing between the body and the mind. The body receives the pain and the mind says, “Stop doing whatever is causing the pain.” So the body is the cause and the mind brings about the effect. The pain is the cause, which has come through the body, and the effect is the future avoidance of pain, which is a thought that comes from the mind. ...
The nature of the mind is thus: the mind comprehends and interprets the sensations felt by the body. ... The mind leads us to understand the inputs that come in through the body.
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Paper Information
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Title: Mind and Body A philosophical view
Words: 2214
Rating: None
Pages: 8.9
submitted by: tpence0
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