Philosophy of Mind, 2

By Kathleen Lennon, Stephen Burwood, Paul B. Gilbert

This engaging and thought-provoking introduction to philosophy of mind covers all the central questions regarding the mind. Taking a novel approach for an introductory text, authors Paul Gilbert, Kathleen Lennon, and Steve Burwood argue that the dominant theories are based on flawed Cartesian assumptions and presuppositions about the nature of mind and body. Beginning with an examination of the Cartesian roots of contemporary philosophy of mind and rationality, the authors show that, despite rejecting mind-body dualism in favour of materialism, most recent philosophies of mind are still Cartesian -- they share a Cartesian conception of the body while adopting a reductionist approach to the mind. Providing a welcome alternative to texts such as Churchland's Matter and Consciousness, the authors develop an alternative position called "perspectivalism," which is based on a metaphysics of the body characterized intentionally and combines elements of both Anglo-American and Continental traditions.

The authors explain the ideas of philosophers such as Wittgenstein, Putnam, Fodor, Davidson, Dennett, and Merleau-Ponty and examine the famous examples these and other philosophers have introduced. They also provide an overview of the issues and debates involving reductionism, functionalism, computational theories of mind, connectionism, the language of thought, externalism versus internalism in the theory of thought content, interpretationism, the problem of consciousness, and theories of experience.

The fresh and incisive perspective of Philosophy of Mind will be of interest to both undergraduate and graduate students in philosophy as well as to students and professionals in cognitive science disciplines who would like an introduction to the philosophical treatment of the subject. Guides to further reading are provided in each chapter and the book includes a helpful glossary and useful diagrams.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0773518266
• ISBN13: 9780773518261
• Release Date: January 1998
• Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
• Length: 223 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 12.5" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

good quick reference

I'm supposed to be writing a paper on the nature of consciousness, and I'm using this book as my main source for the philosophical side of things. It's very good for that sort of thing, being a reletivly condensed overview of the topic.