Functionalism And Its Positive And Negative Arguments

Philosophy, meaning â€Å"Love of Wisdom† in Greek, is a comprehensive system of ideas about human nature and the nature of the reality we live in. (Brakas 1.) Though individual’s philosophical ideas were not always welcomed, it has been practiced since the earliest of existence. In this paper I will focus on functionalism and its positive and negative arguments. I will also construct an argument and demonstrate the properties of functionalism. Before I begin to discuss functionalism I think it would be only best if I lightly outline philosophy and the theories that originated functionalism. The three main branches of philosophy are metaphysics, epistemology, and axiology. Epistemology focuses on the nature of knowledge. Within this category is the philosophy of the mind. The Philosophy of the Mind addresses how the mind is related to the physical world of cause and affect (Sober 203). We ask questions like â€Å"are minds physical things?† â€Å"Are they identi cal with the brain?† â€Å"Are they immaterial?† From these questions we develop the mind/body problem. The mind/body problem tries to understand the relationship between the mental and the physical. Philosophers have developed theories to help us understand and answer these questions. Dualism, behaviorism, the identity theory, and functionalism are just a few theories. Dualism states that there are kinds of things in the world, physical objects and mental objects. The brain and the body are both physical things, but the mind isShow MoreRelatedThomas Nagel And Frank Jackson Do Not1006 Words   |  5 Pageswith behavior. 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