Exploring the Doctrine of Dualism: A Philosophical Analysis

This essay delves into the philosophical doctrine of dualism, focusing on the mind-body problem and its historical development. It begins by defining dualism and tracing its origins from Plato's Theory of Forms through to the theories of Aristotle and Descartes, highlighting key concepts and figures. The essay then examines the mind-body relationship, particularly substance dualism and interactionism, as proposed by Descartes. It explores the challenges and debates surrounding the independent existence of the mind and body, including the role of the pineal gland in Cartesian Dualism. The essay also discusses the relevance of dualism in contemporary neuroscience and its implications for understanding consciousness and cognitive functions. Finally, it considers the perspectives of various philosophers such as Sokolowski, providing a comprehensive analysis of the doctrine of dualism and its impact on the understanding of human existence.

Running Head: DOCTRINE OF DUALISM
Doctrine of Dualism
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author's Note:

1DOCTRINE OF DUALISM
Introduction
The term dualism has been associated with a number of fields, but the concept of a
relationship between body and mind and the question of the presence of one as a physical
entity and the absence of one is dealt in the metaphysics. The philosophical aspect of the
word Dualism deals with the human body as constituting of different entities- material and
immaterial. This field of philosophy is derived from the philosophy of mind where brain and
the mind is two distinct part where brain is the material and the mind is immaterial and that
both have two different functions. The philosophical concept of Dualism is contradictory to
physicalism which denotes that the physical actions are the result of the mental workings of
the mind. The paper will deal with the fundamental question of the mind-body equation and
the plausibility of the theory in establishing a theoretical answer to that.
History of Dualism
Though Dualism as a complete philosophical aspect was formulated much later, one
can trace its origin from the Theory of Forms by Plato, in which he divided the human world
was divided into two categories where the material world was declared as a mere shadow. A
shadow is an immaterial entity can only be perceived by a non-physical entity which he
concluded our intellects to be as it can perceive them. The theory explains the base of
Dualism, but it was a theological concept which described physical forms as a copy of the
originals forms that is the concept of the soul being immortal and unable to survive for too
long confined within the physical entity of the body (Robinson). And the mind is the part of
the original form being able to feel the immaterial that is the belief, sensation and touch could
not be accepted as being a part of the brain for it works with the physical world.
The Aristotelian interpretation of Dualism dealt with mind being a part of the body
but is contained in it. This explained the dual existence and the interdependence but he also
perceived the intellect of the human brain to be immaterial as he explained that if it was

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material than it would serve only form. He explains this with an example of an eye which
only serves the process of providing the human brain the sensation of sight, but the mind can
perceive all the forms which makes it distinctly a non-physical entity (Singer). But this
approach goes against his notion of form being the substance. The Dualism in the recent
times which raises the question of body and mind is the theory of Descartes which distinctly
established mind as the consciousness which deals with the belief and religion and the body
as the physical presence which acts on the external causes which is dealt by the brain which
is simply the physical presence of the mind and constitutes the intelligence (Lovejoy).
However, he was the first one to be able to give a solidified reason for the interaction and co-
existence of these two with the help of pineal gland.
The Mind-body Problem
The mind-body relationship can be explained with the help of substance dualism
which is one of the types of Dualism as introduced by Descartes and hence follows the theory
of mind and body existing two different entities. The substance dualism is also known as
interactionism as it deals with the explanation of the working of mind and body in spite of
being two different entity as evident from the belief that both the entity can exist
independently for mind or the soul as a ghost and the body as a zombie (Bayne). But the
question still lingers for no scientific or pragmatic study can prove the independent existence
of either of the two. There is, however, the concern that mind does perceive entities which are
non-physical such as instincts and intuitions. This brings us to the edge of more questions
surrounding the subject of mind and body arising, such as the existence of different states-
physical and mental (Pitts).
The physical state, when explained from the interactionist point of view, is the
availability and the sensation of the presence of the appearance which can be categorized into
physical and non-physical. The theory of substance dualism is a combination of two different

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characteristics which explains the physical state as the substance which possesses it and the
mental state as what is possessed. So the body or brain possesses the mind which means that
the immaterial things which are the substance of perception stay neutral until and unless it is
provided with the thing to possess (Loose et al.). For example, while thinking about Dualism
itself the brain lets the individual thinks about the possibilities of the state, but without the
intelligence of the brain and shooting neurons which enables the writing process it is
impossible to produce the written version of the perception which was simply possessed by
the mind.
The theory of mind can be further explained as one of Cartesian Dualism as named
after Descartes which shows the interaction of mind and body as being a person and a body
by explaining the property of the body as existing and working on account of the interaction
of these two different realms (Grankvist, Petri and Björn). The reason why I understand and
follow the mind-body relationship is because of the fact that it is only logical to view the
construction of the mind and body and its working together as an interaction between
physical and non-physical. They have been regarded as principles or substances which has
been deemed to be existing in two different realms, and the intellectual realm is not visible to
the physical entity and can only be perceived by the immaterial or the spiritual.
This makes it hard for the scientist to deal with the serious questions raised by the
mind-body as the working of the mind is the center of the cognitive function in the human
anatomical structure which again could not be proved by the neurosciences. Thus it raises the
question that even if we agree that Dualism as a concept believing in the existence of two
different dimensions cannot be accepted by neurosciences, there is no reason why it should
be blatantly refuted as a theological or philosophical hypothesis but due to the fact that
scientists are biased when it comes to phenomenological investigation, they tend to incline
towards methodological materials (Buettner).

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To establish a proper, mind-body relationship, there are several ways in which one
can approach the Dualism according to Sokolowski, "understanding, self-reflectivity,
continuity of consciousness, the irreducibility of consciousness, logical necessity, and said
free mil." (Sokolowski) The understanding of these terms basing on substance dualism shows
why the mind-body question can more fundamentally be answered by the Dualism or more
precisely interactionism of the mind with the body through the awareness or consciousness
which is the product of the necessity of the subject or the substance. It means that the
consciousness or the thinking of any subject is based on the 'aboutness' of the subject which
shows that the mental state is not only dependent on the physical state but is also based on it
(Vintiadis).
Conclusion
Though the origin of Dualism was considered to be theological with the assumption
by Plato and Aristotle of the existence of two realms spiritual and physical, it is by no means
limited to theology or even philosophy for the hypothesis is equally applicable to
neurosciences for the scientists has been unable to produce any substantial data to prove the
working of the cognitive center of the brain. This shows that substance dualism cannot be
negated completely, and even if we base the study on the pineal gland of Plato, it cannot be
deemed as a wrong concept.

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References
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Grankvist, Gunne, Petri Kajonius, and Björn Persson. "The Relationship between Mind-Body
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126-132.
Loose, Jonathan J., Angus JL Menuge, and James Porter Moreland, Eds. The Blackwell
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Lovejoy, Arthur. The revolt against Dualism: an inquiry concerning the existence of ideas.
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