Mind in a Physical World: An Essay on the Mind-Body Problem and Mental Causation (Representation and Mind) by Jaegwon Kim (PDF)

Description

This book, based on Jaegwon Kim’s 1996 Townsend Lectures, presents the philosopher’s current views on a variety of issues in the metaphysics of the mind―in particular, the mind-body problem, mental causation, and reductionism.This book, based on Jaegwon Kim’s 1996 Townsend Lectures, presents the philosopher’s current views on a variety of issues in the metaphysics of the mind―in particular, the mind-body problem, mental causation, and reductionism. Kim construes the mind-body problem as that of finding a place for the mind in a world that is fundamentally physical. Among other points, he redefines the roles of supervenience and emergence in the discussion of the mind-body problem. Arguing that various contemporary accounts of mental causation are inadequate, he offers his own partially reductionist solution on the basis of a novel model of reduction. Retaining the informal tone of the lecture format, the book is clear yet sophisticated.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Kim shows (not says) ‘causation’ covers the “mental” and the “non-mental” as well as a pawn covers two pieces in chess.

⭐Classic.

⭐This book amalgamates and contextualizes much of Kim’s journal publications within the last twenty years. So, readers expecting something entirely fresh may be a bit disappointed. That being said, this book, or the equivalent articles, is a must for anyone wishing to espouse functionalist second-order properties, or is hunting new ways of maintaining the strict physicalism of the mind. To Kim’s credit, significant criticisms have been few and far between, and most share the attitude and thinness of Ned Block’s causal drainage argument that if there is no ultimate atom, causal powers seep into minute infinity.I might add, as somewhat of a disclaimer – just so you don’t blame me later – this little book has all the dormitivity of a hand full of Seconals washed down with a bottle of Beefeater. Enjoy.

⭐Jaegwon Kim offers a weakened physicalist discussion of supervenience and the difficulties it presents for current alternatives to Mind-Body dualism. There is some technical language but it is kept at a minimum. Of primary importance is Kim’s remarkably lucid discussion of “supervenience.”Supervenience tries to explain how mental properties and physical kinds, not tokens, are related. Mental properties supervene on physical properties: For any property M, if anything has M at time t, then there exists a physical base (subvenient) property P such that it has P at t, and necessarily anything that has P at a time has M at that time (Kim 9). This means “every mental property has a physical base that guarantees its instantiation” (10). Thus, mental properties supervene on physical properties. The takeaway is that mental properties must always have a physical base. This is an improvement on older materialist models which said mental properties were physical properties.Supervenience presents a number of problems for physicalism, however. What happens if mental property M causes another mental property M* to be instantiated? For example, my having the state “anger” causes me to have the mental state depression/fear/whatever. This means that, if supervenience holds, M* must also have a physical property P* as its physical base. Two problems immediately arise:a. It appears that a mental property (M) is causing a physical base (P*) which then launches M*. Yet reductionists hold that all things have a physical cause. But this raises the problem:b. So what causes M*? It seems we have multiple causes, overdetermination.Kim restates the problem: if mental properties are physically irreducible and remain outside the physical domain, then, given that the physical domain is causally closed, how can they exercise causal powers (Kim 58)?ConclusionIn terms of an introductory text, albeit a rigorous one, I highly recommend this book. Admittedly, Kim doesn’t solve the problem (cf. p. 58), nor does he pretend to. He introduces the reader to the relevant terminology and explains why certain moves available to physicalists cannot work.

⭐The tedious more or less standard arguments and discussions about the mind-body problem are fatally flawed on at least three counts: (1) the conceptually highly problematic nature of the “physical world” (see, for example, Galen Strawson’s, or Skrbina’s latest, or George Greene’s books); (2) the equally problematic nature of psychology’s supposed “objects of study” (see, for ex., Colin McGinn’s latest on subjective “experience”, or Sigmund Koch’s posthumous study/critique of psychology as a discipline); (3) the confused and confusing concept of “causality” (does one billiard ball hitting a second one “cause” the resulting movement? or does the second ball “cause” a deflection of the first? physics is acausal.). So, given these fundamental limitations, discussing how M&B are (causally?) related when we do not begin to understand the meanings of the principal terms seems downright silly to me.The reviews of the major positions (the omission of panexperientialism or panpsychism — not even mentioned — is notable and in my view inexcusable) are useful, even though at times they use unnecessarily specialized terminology.

⭐Reading this book did not deepen my understanding of how it is that brains impinge on minds or minds on brains. But it greatly sharpened my grasp of what it means to speak of such impingings, and clarified what is problematic about many of the current strains of philosophical thinking on this matter. In short, I found this slim, generally quick-reading book, to be highly stimulating — a wonderful philosophical exercise for my own mind/brain.

⭐Before I was exposed to Philosophy of Mind, I never saw myself as being interested in such philosophical topic. My knowledge in Philosophy of Mind was almost non-existent, and the only thing I knew was the problem with Substance Dualism. I had no idea what anything was in Philosophy of Mind, especially Functionalism. I read this book with the prejudice that the reductionist or materialist view of the Mind is the best explanation. After I read this book, my perspective on Philosophy of Mind has changed. One of the highlight moments in this book was its exposition on Functionalism which has fascinated me, especially how the same realizers can function very differently in different systems embedded into different possible worlds operated by different natural laws. I also began to appreciate the supervenience argument of the mind, especially its flaws in not being clear about the exact nature of the relation between the body and the mind (it could be consistent with epiphenomalism).One of the hallmark qualities of this book is that the author Jaegown Kim writes so clearly and comprehensively that reading it just feels normal, without experiencing any confusion. While admittedly the book becomes more complex chapter after chapter, finishing it has been very rewarding. In this sense, Jaegown Kim has kindled my interest in Philosophy of Mind, and for that I am very grateful.

⭐Would recommend for people studying philosophy of mind.

⭐Mind in a Physical World’ ist so etwas wie Kim’s Kurzargumentation für sein Supervenience-Konstrukt. Er gibt einen Einblick in seine Arbeit zur mentalen Verursachung und handelt dabei die Themen Realisation, Emergenz, Reduktionismus und Funktionalismus ab.Eine sehr gute Erarbeitung des Problems aus Kims Sicht, recht knapp und verständlich, aber in der Argumentation stichhaltig.

⭐

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