Materialism - Identity Theory
Religious Studies: OCR A Level, topic 1.3.4
Materialism: Identity Theory
Mind-brain identity is another model for the materialist explanation of consciousness.
Mind-brain identity
- Although we have different words for mental events and the physical processes which underlie them, they are the same really.
- Talk of the ‘Evening Star’ and the ‘Morning Star’ seems to be about two different objects – but they both refer to the same thing – the planet Venus.
- Neurologists can point to fMRI scans which correlate some mental states with certain patterns of activity.
- But it is easy to oversimplify this and many mental states involve many different parts of the brain.
Evaluation: difficulty explaining
- There are some key aspects of mental states that are very difficult to explain if they are identical to brain states. For instance, qualia and intentionality:
- Qualia are felt experiences like smelling freshly-cut grass. They are properties of the world as seen from the subjective perspective and cannot be seen from the ‘outside-looking-in’.
- Intentionality describes the fact that thinking involves one’s attention being directed towards something.
Limitations of materialism
- Both of these properties of consciousness seem to point to something that current materialist theories are unable to account for.
- After all, it is hard to see how even very complex arrangements of physical ‘stuff’ can give rise to the felt experience of tasting a hamburger.
Dennett's counter-argument
- But Dennett says that consciousness is ‘a bunch of tricks in the brain’ and that, although it is tempting to think so, we are not experts on our own thinking and our minds are constantly fooling us.
- This means we must be wary of assuming things like qualia cannot be explained without positing ‘mind’.
The Soul as a Metaphorical Reality
The Romantics opened up a way of understanding the soul as a metaphorical reality for the faculty which appreciates the sublime aspects of nature and existence.
Influence of Taylor & Plato
- But the Romantics were influenced by Thomas Taylor’s translations of Plato’s works. It is clear that many of the Romantics were essentially Platonist dualists.
Dawkins: soul one and two
- In recent times, Dawkins has labelled the poetic notion of the soul an aesthetic sense within us - ‘soul two’ - which he contrasts with soul one - the traditional non-material essence.
- The concept of soul two, or soul as a metaphor, is only the soul in a weak sense and is not a challenge or threat to a materialistic worldview
- The soul in this sense is just an ability to react with awe or wonder to the natural world.
Test yourself on Materialism - Identity Theory
Whose theory of the soul did the Romantics seem to follow?