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Philosophy of Mind
Quick questions on Physicalism and the Identity Theory - TCE Philosophy (Tasmania)
2short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is physicalism as a monism?Show answer
Monism holds there is ultimately one kind of thing. Physicalism is the monism which says that thing is physical: matter, energy and their arrangements as described by science. On this view the mind is not a separate substance but a feature of the physical brain, and what we call mental events are, in the end, physical processes of the brain. The chief argument is its fit with science.
What is the mind-brain identity theory?Show answer
The sharpest form of physicalism is the identity theory, developed by Ullin Place and J. J. C. Smart in the 1950s.
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