Philosophy of Mind

How do we define consciousness or intentionality? Is the neurophysiology of pain all there is to pain? How do words and mental pictures come to represent things in the world? Do computers think? Barbara Montero tackles these and other thorny issues at the heart of the field of philosophy of mind.

Philosophy of Mind: A Very Short Introduction probes some of the great philosophical questions about the mind: What is the relationship between mind and matter? Can science unravel the mystery of consciousness? How can our thoughts represent things in the world? Are computers genuinely intelligent?

In the book, Barbara Gail Montero highlights key thought experiments used by philosophers to explore the nature of mind and how mind and body relate to each other (the mind-body problem). She leads readers through the strengths and weaknesses of the proposed solutions to the mind-body problem and explores the philosophical conundrums associated with sensation, perception, cognition, and emotion.

While keeping an eye on the contemporary philosophical debate, Montero also considers the cross-cultural roots of philosophy of mind, and its connections to psychology, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and physics.

ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

This little gem offers a succinct, thorough introduction to the central topics in philosophy of mind...providing insight into all the major positions and arguments, this is an excellent foundational book.

Autorentext
Barbara Gail Montero is Professor of Philosophy at the College of Staten Island and Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Her research considers two different notions of 'body': body as the physical or material substance of the world, and body as the moving, breathing, flesh and blood instrument that we use when we run, walk, dance, or play. She is author of Thought in Action: Expertise and the Conscious Mind (2016) and a co-author, with John Toner and Aidan Moran, of Continuous Improvement: Intertwining Mind and Body in Athletic Expertise (2022).

Inhalt

• Preface

• 1: The mind-body problem

• 2: Dualism

• 3: Other minds

• 4: Physicalism

• 5: Intentionality

• 6: Consciousness

• 7: Animals, aliens, and machines

• 8: Dissolving the mind-body problem

• Further reading

• Index