Philosophy of Mind
Syllabus

Spring, 2008

Curtis Brown

This course will begin by discussing the problem of how mental phenomena fit into a physical universe. We will discuss the past century's most influential responses to the problem: behaviorism, the identity theory, and functionalism. We will then consider, in some detail, two main obstacles to a physicalist account of the mind: consciousness and mental content. For different reasons, both of these phenomena seem difficult to account for within a physicalist framework; we will look at attempts to accommodate them (and objections to the success of these attempts.) Finally, we will examine in depth the idea, associated with cognitive science, that the mind should be understood as a kind of computer.

David Chalmers, ed., Philosophy of Mind: Classical and Contemporary Readings
Andy Clark, Mindware: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Cognitive Science
John R. Searle, The Rediscovery of the Mind

TR 8:30 - 10:30 AM; MW 4:00 - 5:00.

I am usually in my office during office hours, but occasionally a meeting or another commitment prevents this.  If you just drop by during office hours, you will probably find me in; if you want to see me at another time, or if you want to be certain I'll be in, we can set up an appointment.

1. There will be a mid-term examination on Wednesday, March 5. The mid-term will count 20% of the final grade.

2. A literature review is due Monday, February 25. This will count 15% of the final grade. Each member of the class will select a specific topic in the philosophy of mind, and will prepare a review of the literature on that topic to be posted to the TLEARN site for the class. The review will include an annotated bibliography including both book and journal sources. (Journals with full-text online access are fine but don't limit yourself to those. Web sites may be listed also, but won't substitute for book chapters or journal articles.) It will also include a concise (say 4-5 pages) summary of some of the main interpretive debates and positions discussed in the literature. Topics will be chosen from a list I will distribute. (If you want to do something not on the list, you must clear the topic with me beforehand.) Each class member must select a different topic. I'll provide more details about this soon.

3. One substantial paper, of 3000 - 4500 words (approximately 10-15 pages), is due on Monday, April 21. The paper must include discussion of some of the readings for the course; I will give you a longer handout about it later. I encourage you to give me a rough draft as early as possible. The paper will count 25% of the final grade. I will accept late papers, but the grade will be dropped one notch (e.g., from a B to a B- or from a B- to a C+) for every week day the paper is late. The paper must be turned in electronically; whether you also give me a hard copy is up to you. I recommend turning in a draft of the paper by Wednesday, April 2.

4. There will be a cumulative final exam. This is scheduled for Wednesday, May 7, at 2:00 PM. It will count 25% of the final grade.

5. I would like you to write short (a single-spaced page or so) essays on the reading material weekly. Every Monday during the semester unless there is no class or an exam or major paper is scheduled for that day, a 1-page paper on the reading for that week will be due. Sometimes I may ask you to write on a specific question; at other times you may write on whatever aspect of that week's reading you choose. Your principal objective in these essays should be to get clear about what is going on in the reading. This could involve explaining someone's argument, trying to figure out what he or she is arguing for, comparing one philosopher's views with those of another we have read, considering how the author might respond to possible questions, etc. These essays will be graded simply as (S) or unsatisfactory (U). At the end of the semester I will assign a letter grade as follows: anyone who has missed or received an unsatisfactory grade on 0 or 1 of the essays will receive an A; 2, B; 3, C; 4, D; 5 or more, F. These short essays must be turned in before the beginning of class on the due date in order to receive credit. They will count 15% of the final grade.

6. Attendance and participation will be taken into account in determining the final grade. Excessive absence is grounds for an F in the course. I expect that participation will include occasional presentations to the class. I will provide more information about this once I determine what the final enrollment of the class will be.

You should make sure that you are familiar with the University’s Honor Code or the academic integrity policy, whichever applies to you. (Students who entered Trinity prior to the fall of 2004 are governed by the Academic Integrity Policy (AIP), while students who entered in the fall of 2004 or later are governed by the Academic Honor Code.) Both are described in the Student Handbook; information about the honor code is also available on the Honor Code web site. Note that violations of academic integrity include cheating, counterfeit work (i.e. turning in work that was done by someone else), unauthorized reuse of your own work ("turning in the same work to more than one class without consent of the instructors involved"), and plagiarism. The Student Handbook description of plagiarism is important enough to quote at length: "presenting as one's work the work of someone else without properly acknowledging the source. . . . Exact copying should be enclosed in quotation marks and be appropriately documented in footnotes or end notes that indicate the source of the quotation. Paraphrasing, when the basic sentence structure, phraseology, and unique language remain the same, is also plagiarism. When in doubt about these matters, it is the student's responsibility to seek guidance from the instructor of the course."

What counts as a violation of academic integrity is the same regardless of which policy you are governed by. The difference lies in the procedures for determining whether a violation has occurred and if so what the penalty will be. Under the Integrity Policy, the faculty member determines whether a violation has occurred as well as the punishment for the violation (if any) within certain guidelines. Under the Code, a faculty member will (or a student may) report an alleged violation to the Academic Honor Council. It is the task of the Council to investigate, adjudicate, and assign a punishment within certain guidelines if a violation has been verified.

Students who are under the Honor Code are required to pledge all written work that is submitted for a grade by writing, on the submitted work: “On my honor, I have neither given nor received any unauthorized assistance on this work,” followed by their signature. The pledge may be abbreviated “pledged” with a signature.

Like most faculty members, I take academic integrity very seriously. Remember that any use of material you did not write yourself, either word-for-word or in close paraphrase, is plagiarism. This is true even if the passage is only a sentence or two long, and no matter where the material came from, including web sites, discussion groups, or the papers of other students. I will strictly follow the Honor Code policy by reporting any suspected violation of the policy to the Honor Council. (For students to whom the academic integrity policy applies, I will strictly follow that policy as well, including sending the appropriate letters of notification to university administrators.) I have had some students suggest that their plagiarism is "not a big deal." You should be aware that I do regard it as a big deal. Other students have told me they were not aware that what they were doing was a violation of academic integrity. If you have any uncertainty about the policy, or about whether the specific use of other sources you are considering is acceptable, come and talk with me. I’ll be happy to clarify what is acceptable and what is not. Finally, I have heard from some students that they resorted to plagiarism because they were overwhelmed by an assignment and saw no way of completing it successfully without resorting to cheating. Ironically, in many cases, if these students had worked as hard at writing a paper as they did at plagiarizing, they could certainly have written an acceptable paper. If you are having trouble getting started on a paper, please come and talk with me.

A detailed list of readings with dates may be found here.

I. The Place of the Mental in a Physical Universe: Theoretical Approaches

A. Dualism

C. Behaviorism

D. The Identity Theory

E. Functionalism

II. Consciousness

III. Intentionality

IV. Philosophy and Cognitive Science