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Single Idea 3961

[filed under theme 17. Mind and Body / D. Property Dualism / 2. Anomalous Monism ]

Full Idea

All mental events are causally related to physical events. ..This seems obvious.

Gist of Idea

Obviously all mental events are causally related to physical events

Source

Donald Davidson (Davidson on himself [1994], p.231)

Book Ref

'A Companion to the Philosophy of Mind', ed/tr. Guttenplan,Samuel [Blackwell 1995], p.231


A Reaction

All mental events are physically caused. Some bodily physical events result from mental events. Probably all mental events have some effect of other mental events (all of which are in some sense physical).


The 13 ideas with the same theme [mind is a causal oddity in a physical world]:

Anomalous monism says nothing at all about the relationship between mental and physical [Davidson, by Kim]
Mind is outside science, because it is humanistic and partly normative [Davidson, by Lycan]
Anomalous monism says causes are events, so the mental and physical are identical, without identical properties [Davidson, by Crane]
If rule-following and reason are 'anomalies', does that make reductionism impossible? [Davidson, by Kim]
Davidson claims that mental must be physical, to make mental causation possible [Davidson, by Kim]
There are no strict psychophysical laws connecting mental and physical events [Davidson]
Obviously all mental events are causally related to physical events [Davidson]
Mental entities do not add to the physical furniture of the world [Davidson]
Contrary to the 'anomalous monist' view, there may well be intentional causal laws [Fodor]
If causes are basic particulars, this doesn't make conscious and physical properties identical [Papineau]
There are many psychophysicals laws - about the effects of sweets, colours and soft cushions [Mellor/Crane]
Cars and bodies obey principles of causation, without us knowing any 'strict laws' about them [Flanagan]
Denial of purely mental causation will lead to epiphenomenalism [Maslin]