Philosophy of Mind, Essay Example

In the debate between dualism and physicalism surrounding the philosophy of mind, both sides contribute meaningful concepts and understandings of the basic phenomenology of experience. Dualist philosophy advocates the reasonable assertion that thoughts are not, themselves “things,” nor can consciousness be understood through a purely material paradigm. Obviously a human-being is more than a collection of physical processes. A personality, memories, and imagination are beyond the scope of physical understanding. At the same time, there is no question that the substance of the objective world is, in many ways, best described through physical laws. This is truer at the macrocosmic than microcosmic level. A theory such as physcialistic monism which holds that all existing substances are physical is supported by an enormous body of scientific evidence as well as common-sense experience of the universe. At the quantum level, however, science tells us that physical matter behaves in a way that is much more exotic and mysterious than classical physics indicates. It may very well be the case that consciousness and even thoughts themselves are “made” of quantum-stuff. This may return physics to the idea of an “Aether” that connects all things. This could also be understood as a universal mind and that would explain certain phenomena such as empathy and telepathy. I personally believe that it is possible to experience non-local and non-verbal communication with other people as well as with animals. This may not be a prevailing idea or opinion in contemporary Western society, but is an idea that is well-supported through non-western traditions and tribal societies throughout the entire world.