PHIL 306: PHILOSOPHY OF MIND
MTWJ, 1:35 - 3:55
Instructor: Pierre Charette
Email: pcharepo-box.mcgill.ca
Office hours: M-T: 12:30-1:30; W-J: 4:00-5:00
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course provides an overview of the main issues that constitute the domain of philosophy
which has come to be known, since the early 20th century, as the "philosophy of mind". The course takes a
historical approach of the field, focusing on modern philosophy, from Descartes to the present.
At the core of modern philosophy of mind, we can discern two basic, nested problems:
A) The broader problem is that of the distinctiveness of mental phenomena, and of their place in the world
of nature. Mental phenomena, in different regards, seem to be markedly distinct from nonmental
phenomena. If they are, what does that distinctiveness consist in? How does the mind fit in the natural
world?
B) More specifically, there is the "mind-body problem": how do we account for the relationship between
mind and body?
Those two problems, bearing specifically on the nature of mental phenomena, connect with other,
broader philosophical problems, notably: the problem of our knowledge of the external world (the
"epistemological problem"); and the problem of accounting for human action (the "psychological
problem"). Moreover, the philosophy of mind raises the issue of the relationships between philosophy, the
sciences, and our ordinary outlook, particularly that part of it which some philosophers have characterized
as “folk psychology”.
The course shows, from a historical perspective, how those problems are intertwined, and how
philosophers have construed them, and have proposed to solve them.
The course covers the following historical periods and doctrines:
1. Classical modern philosophy: Descartes, Locke, Hume;
2. Franz Brentano and 19th century psychology;
3. Logical positivism and behaviorism;
4. Identity theories, functionalism;
5. The "Oxford School";
TEXTS
The readings for the course are included in a coursepack.
REQUIREMENTS
Students are required to write two five-page papers. The mark for each paper will represent 25%
of the final grade. The topic of the first paper will be issued on June 9th; the paper will have to be handed
by June 16th. The topic for the second paper will be issued on June 16th; the paper will have to be handed
by June 23rd.
There will be a comprehensive exam on the last day of course. The mark for the exam will
represent 50% of the final grade.
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