According to Lisa Zunshine, theory of mind is essential to both verbal communication, and reading fiction. She defines the principle as the ability to explain physical actions through mental phenomena. Through ToM, we are able to discern the thoughts and motives of people that we encounter. For example, when someone is yelling and animated, we can infer they are likely upset. When reading, we also attribute mental states to characters; we question the motives behind their decisions. Zunshine suggests that this is the reason that we enjoy reading fiction. It parallels our interactions in real life.
Beilock, Sian. How the Body Knows Its Mind. New York, NY: Atria Books, 2015. Print. (152-158)
In The article “Brainology” “Carol S Dweck, a professor of psychology at Stanford University, differentiates between having a fixed and growth mindset in addition how these mindsets have a deep effect on a student’s desire to learn. Individuals who have a fixed mindset believe they are smart without putting in effort and are afraid of obstacles, lack motivation, and their focus is to appear smart.. In contrast, students with a growth mindset learn by facing obstacles and are motivated to learn. Dwecks argues that students should develop a growth mindset.
In the magic of the mind author Dr. Elizabeth loftus explains how a witness’s perception of an accident or crime is not always correct because people's memories are often imperfect. “Are we aware of our minds distortions of our past experiences? In most cases, the answer is no.” our minds can change the way we remember what we have seen or heard without realizing it uncertain witnesses “often identify the person who best matches recollection
This paper will examine the reliability of George Berkeley’s metaphysical theory of Idealism. Berkeley’s Idealism holds that reality is made real by what the mind perceives and that what we perceive to be material is really a collection of immaterial sensations. Idealism is defined as the view “that only mental entities exist, so physical things exist only in the sense that they are perceived” (“Idealism”). Berkeley’s argument of Subjective Idealism is the view that reality consists of one’s mind and its ideas, while Objective Idealism says in addition, a supreme mind produces ideas in the physical world that do not depend on human minds to exist (Velasquez 146). Without Objective Idealism, one can undergo solipsism which is the belief that only one’s self and experiences of the world are real and everything else does not exist (“Solipsism”). Opposing Idealism is the metaphysical view of Materialism which holds that only physical things exist (“Materialism”). This paper will start by examining George Berkeley’s views of Subjective and Objective Idealism and how they apply to reality. Then, the critiques made and supported by Aristotle and Thomas Hobbes against both views of Idealism will be argued. However, these arguments fail to properly examine Berkeley’s Idealism, thus causing the critiques to be based upon misinformation. Although the criticisms pose potential flaws, Berkeley’s Idealism continues to be a major discussion in the metaphysical debate.
In the struggle of mind over matter, an individual needs to have courage to use the knowledge that he or she possess. By using the knowledge available to us, we as individuals have the ability to overcome opposing forces in our lives which seem to keep us from progressing (mentally and emotionally), and which can seem larger than life. In Homer's epic The Odyssey, The use of cunning to disguise and deceive and to ultimately overcome the godlike opposition that manifests itself many times throughout the book, and makes Odysseus' return home possible. Without the ability to deceive, Odysseus' brute strength alone would have exhibited a futile display of power in the presence of the gods of Ancient Greece. Much like the lives of individuals, if we do not use our cunning and wit in a most effective manner, and rely on strength instead knowledge, we are destined for a life of failure and/or mediocracy . If Odysseus hadn't had the courage and cunning to return home his destiny would have consisted of spending the rest of his life on an island with Calypso, miserable.
This philosophical study will support the theory of interactive mind/body dualism in the writings of Renee Descartes. The distinction between the energy of the mind is typically separated from the function of the body, yet Descartes found that they interacted to form thoughts. Descartes’ theory of dualism also defines how the mind can generate thoughts through the bodily function of the brain. In this context, Descartes found that the pineal gland was an example of a bodily organ, which could transmute the pneuma (aka. the spirit) to generate a thought through the mind. This type of mind and body interaction successfully defines Descartes dualism in the development of the thought process. The pineal gland supports the contention that the brain must work in conjunction with the mind I the formation of human consciousness. In essence, Descartes’ interactive dualism defines the cooperative operations of the brain and the mind that work to form thoughts through the pineal gland and the pneuma.
In the essay “Thought” by Louis H. Sullivan, he states that people don’t always need words just to communicate. There are several ways that individuals are able to communicate without words, they can express themselves by gestures and facial features, like explaining themselves to others. Sullivan believes that both thinking and creative thinking are better without words and that the minds is always working; therefore, it does not have time to place words together. In order to think clearly they must use other means of pondering; although, the mind works quickly it will take a long time to write what they are thinking because the mind continues without stopping. When individuals are reading they are not think their own thought exactly but what
We are not only given the thoughts of the character but are also provided with a
This theory is not only credible in literature, to discuss the intentions of an author, but is also effectively used in film, to discuss the intentions of a director. One benefit of this theory is that it can help with many literary problems. For example, Freudian critics not only “stress distinction between the conscious and the unconscious”, but also uncover “the unconscious motives of characters” as well as see “an embodiment of classic psychoanalytic conditions” within literary works (Barry 101). By drawing connections between concepts in the text, we are able to further enrich our understanding of the work and, if we plan to discuss it with others, are able to yield a meaningful, coherent interpretation of the
According to Korsgaard, the human mind is “essentially reflective” (92). By this, she means that we are capable of examining and evaluating the various perceptions and desires which make up the content of our mind. This ablility gives rise to a problem she terms the “normative problem,” since we can critically question whether the perceptions and desires we experience are reasons, or whether they dictate how we should act. This is a problem because if the mind continues to reflect and can grasp no reason, “it cannot commit itself or go forward” (93). She also thinks that “because of the reflective character of the mind ... we must act ... under the idea of freedom” (94). Desires and perceptions appear to us, but which of them influences our actions is a matter of which we choose to act on. The notion of “freedom” as well as that of “reasons” are essential for explaining how we make decisions when we reflect on our options for how to act (96). Korsgaard defines a reason as a “reflective success,” or an agent 's affirmation of some
Sigmund Freud was the founder of modern psychology. Freud’s theories of the mind and how the mind worked changed how psychoanalyst look at the mind and its actions. Freud’s universal theory of the mind will more than likely outlive the psychoanalytical therapy. Sigmund Freud is respectively compared to other notable men, such as Plato and Shakespeare. Some people believe his effect is more important to us than the lasting value of his theories. He was an Austrian neurologist who created a new approach to the knowledge of the human personality.
When I read the profiles of John as an introvert and as an extrovert, my mind kept returning to the thought that both of these stories were about the same man; that each told the story of that man in different circumstances. Immediately, my mind led me down the road of creating the story behind John. Was the extrovert John his normal persona, but introvert John showed up on a melancholy day? Or perhaps, Jon was usually very introverted, but we caught him on a particularly optimistic day in the extroverted scenario? I found myself wanting more details; wondering why he had not spoken with the pretty girl from last night. Why did he need the stationery? How does he know so many people in the paper store? Obviously, he is not a total recluse if he had the opportunity to see the pretty girl. My reaction is explained easily enough by author Malcolm Gladwell, "We have, as human beings, a storytelling problem. We're a bit too quick to come up with explanations for things we don't really have an explanation for." (Gladwell, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking , 2005) Gladwell clarifies that when we are missing the details we crave to fill these gaps in the stories, we feel the need to create them ourselves. He further defines this behavior as “rapid cognition” which is, “…the kind of thinking that happens in a blink of an eye. When you meet someone for the first time, or walk into a house you are thinking of buying, or read the first few sentences of a book, your mind takes about two seconds to jump to a series of conclusions.” (Gladwell, 2005) We utilize rapid cognition on a daily basis to judge people and situations all around us. It is a subconscious process in which we size up a person or situation in approximately t...
That our perception of the world is predominantly governed by the senses of sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell is not disputed. However, scientists and amateur academics alike have historically disagreed about the existence of any additional senses, with the most contentious debate surrounding the phenomenon generally referred to as ESP, or "psi." Despite the vast number of people who claim to have or to have witnessed psychic abilities, the corresponding research has found little that is empirically valid or significant to corroborate the wealth of more anecdotal evidence. To establish their validity, it would be necessary to show how they occur in the sensory system - how the input is received and how the subsequent outputs are generated - and so far there is no evidence for the presence of a mechanism specified for this task. Regardless of the extent to which skeptics can take their argument, that so many people over time have reported some degree of extrasensory perception somewhat justifies an inquiry into its history as a cultural and scientific phenomenon as well as any potential empirical proof.
Gilbert Ryle’s The Concept of Mind (1949) is a critique of the notion that the mind is distinct from the body, and is a rejection of the philosophical theory that mental states are distinct from physical states. Ryle argues that the traditional approach to the relation of mind and body (i.e., the approach which is taken by the philosophy of Descartes) assumes that there is a basic distinction between Mind and Matter. According to Ryle, this assumption is a basic 'category-mistake,' because it attempts to analyze the relation betwen 'mind' and 'body' as if they were terms of the same logical category. Furthermore, Ryle argues that traditional Idealism makes a basic 'category-mistake' by trying to reduce physical reality to the same status as mental reality, and that Materialism makes a basic 'category-mistake' by trying to reduce mental reality to the same status as physical reality.
Schizophrenia is a mental illness of the highest order that effects the brain in mysterious ways. It is a disease that’s root has riddled both scientist and doctors for centuries. Although being diagnosed with it is very rare, the results it has produced on humans are very disturbing. It has even affected a few of the great minds in our world’s history, driving them insane, beyond human reason. It throws out all logic and reason that we might have and replaces it with fantasy. It truly is like living in another reality. So what exactly is schizophrenia, what does it do to the human mind, and can its riddle be solved in the future? I will take a close look at these questions and the staggering effect that schizophrenia has had on its victims.