more from this thinker     |     more from this text

Single Idea 3537

[filed under theme 15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 4. Other Minds / d. Other minds by analogy ]

Full Idea

I conclude other humans have feelings like me because they have bodies like mine (which I know in my case to be antecedent to feelings), and because they exhibit acts and outwards signs which I know in my own case to be caused by feelings.

Gist of Idea

I judge others' feeling by analogy with my body and behaviour

Source

John Stuart Mill (Examination of Sir Wm Hamilton's Philosophy [1865], p.243), quoted by Keith T. Maslin - Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind 8.2

Book Ref

Maslin,Keith: 'An Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind' [Polity 2001], p.215

A Reaction

It is hard to see anything further that can be added to the 'other minds' question. Behaviour is highly relevant (imagine meeting a human who talked like a robot), but so are bodies (imagine a tin box that talked like Marilyn Monroe).

The 12 ideas with the same theme [knowing other minds as like our own mind]:

3537 I judge others' feeling by analogy with my body and behaviour [Mill]
5379 If we didn't know our own minds by introspection, we couldn't know that other people have minds [Russell]
5663 It is irresponsible to generalise from my own case of pain to other people's [Wittgenstein]
19272 To imagine another's pain by my own, I must imagine a pain I don't feel, by one I do feel [Wittgenstein]
14644 If my conception of pain derives from me, it is a contradiction to speak of another's pain [Malcolm]
9282 I can only apply consciousness predicates to myself if I can apply them to others [Strawson,P]
15495 Analogy works, as when we eat food which others seem to be relishing [Martin,CB]
3457 Other minds are not inferred by analogy, but are our best explanation [Searle]
2757 The argument from analogy rests on one instance alone [Dancy,J]
2758 You can't separate mind and behaviour, as the analogy argument attempts [Dancy,J]
7091 The argument from analogy is not a strong inference, since the other being might be an actor or a robot [Grayling]
3538 Analogy to other minds is uncheckable, over-confident and chauvinistic [Maslin]