SAQ 1.3 (Tests Learning Outcome 1.3)
6.4 Berkeley on the Mind-Body Problem
Theorists’ attempts to define reality with regard to consciousness have affirmed three positions in all. The first is physical monism – the idea that only the physical objects and entities are real;
mental-physical dualism the idea that both the physical world and the mental world are real; and mental monism, which argues that only the mental world constitutes the primary reality and that the physical world is merely a construct of the mental world.
The father of modern philosophy, Rene Descartes, brought the mind-body problem, which has elicited the three positions, to the fore. Descartes argues that both the body and the mind constitute separate realities, each with its distinct features and that the two interact. The basis of the interaction is the principal starting point of the mind-body problem.
Descartes was also aware of this and he explained that the two interacted through the pineal gland, which, according to him, was situated at the base of the brain. The nature of the pineal gland was, however, an intractable problem for Descartes. Although, he did not proffer a satisfactory solution, yet he passed the problem on.
In addressing this problem, Berkeley adopts the mental monist position popularly called idealism. In Berkeley’s view, ‘the only reality is that which exists in the mind.’ (Wilde 2010:
87) The idealism of Berkeley is a step further in his argument of the dependence of existence upon perception.
Berkeley’s argument necessitated that he refute the reality of the body. This is because the initial premise of his philosophy denies the existence of matter when he contended that all that there is
to reality is the thinking mind and its perception.
Hence, contrary to the position of Descartes that apart from the thinking mind, there is also an external world out there that exists independent of the mind, Berkeley maintains that only the thinking mind is real.
The only other thing, which Berkeley identified apart from the mind and its perception, is God.
For Berkeley, God is the source or originator of the mind and he too is not a material being, hence, there is no place for matter or the extended body in the philosophy of Berkeley. In this way, Berkeley’s philosophy is in a way exculpated from the problem of the interaction of the mind as a substance that is categorically different from the body.
Summary of Study Session 6
In Study Session 6, you have learnt that:
1. The core of Berkeley’s position is that existence of entities depends on a perception of them by the human mind or the Divine mind of God, which keeps things in existence by constantly perceiving them.
2. The idea of Berkeley, which in his own words, is to be perceived’ greatly influenced his other philosophical postulations. For example, Berkeley’s epistemology sees knowledge as perceiving sensations rather than actual external objects, which exist, independent of the mind.
3. Berkeley’s contribution to the discourse on the mind-body problem suggests that the min-body puzzle is a pseudo-problem because there is nothing like matter or material entity that exists on its own and which we need to explain its interaction with the mind.
Self-Assessment Question (SAQs) for Study Session 6
Now that you have completed this study session, you can assess how well you have achieved its Learning outcomes by answering the following questions. Write your answers in your study Diary and discuss them with your Tutor at the next study Support Meeting. You can check your answers with the Notes on the Self-Assessment questions at the end of this Module.
SAQ 6.1 (Tests Learning Outcome 6.1) Give account of George Berkeley’s early life SAQ 6.2 (Tests Learning Outcome 6.2
Write a critical note on Berkeley’s idea of “To be is to be perceived.”
SAQ 6.3 (Tests Learning Outcome 6.3)
Attempt a critique of George Berkeley’s epistemological idea.
SAQ 6.4 (Tests Learning Outcome 6.4)
1. What role does God play in Berkeley’s metaphysics?
2. In what way does Berkeley’s philosophy attempt to address the mind-body problem?
Study Session 7 David Hume
Introduction
David Hume skeptical approach to a range of philosophical subjects. In epistemology, he questioned common notions of personal identity, and argued that there is no permanent “self”
that continues over time.
He dismissed standard accounts of causality and argued that our conceptions of cause-effect relations are ground in habits of thinking, rather than in the perception of causal forces in the external world itself. He defended the skeptical position that human reason is inherently contradictory, and it is only through naturally instilled beliefs that we can navigate our way through common life.
This study session will expose you to David Hume’s methods of physical science, ideas of impression, notion of causality, idea of the self, view of Scepticism and Moral Theory
Learning Outcomes for Study Session 7
At the end of this study session, you should be able to:
7.1 Describe the life and time of David Hume.
7.2
Explain Hume’s methods of physical science7.3
Examine the ideas of impressions and ideas in Hume’s philosophy.7.4 Explain Hume’s notion of causality 7.5 Describe Hume’s idea of the self.
7.6 Describe Hume’s view of Scepticism 7.7 Explain Hume’s moral theory