Pros And Cons Of Dualism

The second and equally pivotal theory of mind that I will tackle is that of dualism. The key proponent of dualism was Rene Descartes, the reknowned French Philosopher who developed the argument of, “I think, therefore I am”. This was perhaps his best explanation in describing how the human mind is distinct and separate from the physical body. The philosopher was in search for a fact that would supersede any doubt, with an aim of finding the absolute certainty that would lead to knowledge. In his arguments, Descartes is of the opinion that reasoning is the foundation of finding the absolute certainty. In this regard, therefore, the mind cannot be dissociated from reasoning and pure logic so as not to make an error. Thus, philosophically speaking, it is advisable to steer the mind clear of any distractions and
This is especially the case when dualism is approached from the mind and body perspective. For instance, it is easy to expound on the issue of dualism of the mind and body through the use of pain. Physical scientists believe that stimulation and pain are one and the same, which is not the case for philosophers as they believe that two things can only be similar if one cannot exist without the other. Physicalists only look at the empirical evidence in putting their arguments across, which happens to be incorrect when it comes to philosophers. The latter believe that pain can cause simulation and vice versa, but this is not to say that the two are identical in any way. Another argument in defense of dualism is the fact that scientists have an option of using laboratories to experiment on their arguments and suspicions; for philosophers, though, these experimentations take place in the mind. Just like the mind is likely to err, then so are physicalists likely to blunder in the physical lab