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Full Idea
Like hands, you don't have to know how the mind evolved to make a pretty shrewd guess at what it's for; for example, that it's to think with.
Gist of Idea
The function of a mind is obvious
Source
Jerry A. Fodor (In a Critical Condition [2000], Ch.17)
Book Ref
Fodor,Jerry A.: 'In Critical Condition' [MIT 2000], p.210
A Reaction
I like this. This is one of the basic facts of philosophy of mind, and it frequently gets lost in the fog. It is obvious that the components of the mind (say, experience and intentionality) will be better understood if their function is remembered.
| 16198 | Knowledge is the essence of the mind [Spinoza] |
| 5034 | Mind is a thinking substance which can know God and eternal truths [Leibniz] |
| 23184 | The mind is a simplifying apparatus [Nietzsche] |
| 7131 | The intellect and senses are a simplifying apparatus [Nietzsche] |
| 22652 | The mind has evolved entirely for practical interests, seen in our reflex actions [James] |
| 21949 | Having thoughts and feelings need engagement in the world [Heidegger, by Wrathall] |
| 3995 | A mind is an organ of representation [Lewis] |
| 2508 | The function of a mind is obvious [Fodor] |
| 2503 | Empirical approaches see mind connections as mirrors/maps of reality [Fodor] |