Arguing About the Mind

This book is an Anthology of both seminal and topical articles on the philosophy of the mind. It elaborates on a wide range of theories of mind advanced by philosophers as they go about the business of doing what they do best: thinking, reasoning and trying to advance the frontiers of logic and human understanding. Here we get the philosopher's take on how the mind operates, how it relates to the non-mental world, the relationship between mind and body, and the nature of self (itself). It also includes lessons learned from mental illnesses, from split-brain research, as well as the controversy over the existence of animal consciousness and animal intelligence. It concludes with two of the sexiest topics in philosophy of the mind today: artificial intelligence, and whether there are intelligent beings on other planets. All of the stars of contemporary philosophy are present and at their very best. Although Bertrand Russell's essay "What is the soul," is thrown in for good measure, in general classicists may be disappointed, as the book in general is pitched towards the present and the future. Although clearly intended for college students of philosophy (and is not the last word in any case), it is nonetheless carefully selected and is accessible to a wider more general audience. The book is divided into nine sections: I.-II. Consciousness (What is the problem? and How should it be studied?); III. Is the mind physical? IV. How is the mind related to the body? V. What is self? VI. What can pathological cases teach us about the mind? VII. How can we know whether - and what - non-human animals think? VIII. Can machine think? IX. Is there intelligent life on other planets? Each of the nine sections begin with a clear, informative introduction to the questions it covers. They give an overview of the topics, including questions and suggestions for additional reading. Even if the reader picks and chooses he will be more than satisfied. Clearly a five star effort.