1. The Mind Body Problem
Our minds seem to be non-physical and different from our bodies. Our bodies seem to be something different from our minds. Are they actually different? What is a mind? What is a body? How do they relate?

2. Substance Dualism Our bodies and minds are separate things
Substance – a “thing” which exists independently from other things (e.g. a horse, a cat, a human). It has properties, but is not a property of another thing
Property – a quality that a substance has (e.g. red, round, cold)
Substance: Socrates
Balding head
Grey Hair

3. Descartes Meditations
Meditation 1 – I can’t be sure that I have a body, that other people, or my past or the world outside my head really exists. I could be tricked Meditation 2 – But, I cannot doubt that I exist because I am thinking about myself. I am a permanent self- contained, self-conscious ego
B 1596
D 1650
Meditations 1641

4. Argument for Substance Dualism
The Conceivability argument (Descartes):
P1: I can doubt that my body exists (from Meditation 1)
P2: I cannot doubt that my mind exists (from Meditation 2)
P3: If A differs in any way from B, then A is not B
C: So, my mind is not my body

5. Analogy to the Conceivability Argument
P1: I can doubt that I’m drinking H20 P2: I cannot doubt that I’m drinking water P3: If A differs in any way from B, then A is not B C: So, Water is not H20

6. Descartes’ Divisibility Argument
P1: My body is divisible P2: My mind is not divisible P3: If A differs in any way from b, A is not B C: So, my mind is not my body

7. Princess Elizabeth’s Objection to Descartes
How can a totally non-physical mind cause things to happen to a totally physical body? How can a totally physical body cause things to happen to a totally non-physical mind?

8. The “Life after Death” argument
P1: If substance dualism is false, then my mind cannot exist independently from my body P2: My mind can exist independently from my body (NDEs, ghosts, reincarnation, etc) C: So, Substance dualism is true

9. Physicalism
The mind is the brain itself and nothing more. In other words, mind = brain

10. Argument for Physicalism
Neuroscience has shown a strong link between what happens to and in our brains and what happens to and in our minds
Argument for Physicalism

12. The Case of Phineas Gage

13. Against Physicalism
A complete physical description of our brains and bodies, even in every detail, still seems to leave out something. What is left out is our personal/subjective experience, the “what it's like for us.”

14. The Case of Mary

15. Inverted Spectrum Case

16. Argument against Physicalism
P1: If you are just your brain, than a complete description of your brain should be a complete description of your mind P2: A complete description of your brain is NOT a complete description of your mind [it cannot explain private, subjective experiences (like “seeing red”] C: So, you are not just your brain

17. Property Dualism vs. Substance Dualism
Mind is not Body
Mind can exist apart from body; in other words, mind & body are independent substances
Property Dualism:
Not all mental states are physical states
Mind cannot exist apart from body; in other words mind & body are two aspects of ONE AND SAME substance