Monism Vs DualismMonism Vs DualismFor centuries philosophers have debated on monism and dualism, two different philosophical views of the human person. Philosophers have been trying to decipher whether the person is made up of the mind, the body, or both. Monists hold the belief that existence is purely based upon one ultimate “category of being” this means that either the person is made up of only the body or only the mind (Morris p155). Dualists hold the belief that existence is based upon the body as well as the mind and its mental properties (Morris p155).
There are two basic types of monism. The first view is materialism, which states, “All that exists is matter, configured into material objects” (Morris p155). In other words materialists believe everything that exists is purely physical. Materialists believe that existence is only based on the body. This leads to the materialist assumption that people do not exist with their mind, soul or spirit (Morris p155). The essence of the materialist view is that a human being is made up of and functions by means of matter and every action or thing has physical means that it exists upon. “All things, no matter how many or of what variety, can be reduced to one unified thing in time, space, or quality” (Encyclopedia of Philosophy-Monism).
There are different renditions of materialism known among modern philosophers. One rendition of materialism is called eliminative materialism. Eliminative materialism implies that there are no such things as thoughts, pains, and feelings but that our brain is simply made up of events that cause these emotions (Morris p159). For example, if a person puts their hand on a hot stove and jumps, the cause of that jump was the brain and not the stove. Another rendition of materialism is known as reductive materialism. Contrary to the belief of eliminative materialism, reductive materialism illustrates that sensations such as feelings do exist, and that brain events are the cause of those thoughts, pains, and feelings (Morris p159).
Another form of monism is called idealism. Idealism is a form of monism that proposes the idea that everything is based on the mind or mentality of a person and nothing exists outside of our mind. “The theory is that all that exists is the product of minds or ideas, that physical objects have no existence outside of the mind that is conscious of them” (Xrefer- Monism). Idealism is simply stating that what we see is merely contributed to our mind and nothing else. In other words, physical things are actually mental and everything is based on the mind. For example, when a person sees a tall tree, the tree does not really exist it is just a picture in their mind. Idealism is not common among modern philosophers because idealists dont have any solid facts for their argument that we exist with only our mind and what our mind produces (Morris p159). Another argument is that if the tree is a picture in a persons mind then how come another person can see the exact same picture?
The first is logical. Since the physical world we live in is always different from what our mind produces it would appear that the physical world is based on mental objects. This is why we have such simple concepts like “the picture is real”, or “something real is not there”.
The idea that a person’s mind produced a picture, if made up purely of physical entities and then reattributed within the mind of another person, can possibly be considered a form of monism. There are many types of theories about what a person actually did. Examples of examples are beliefs, theories of consciousness, and theory of causality. Some of these theories are rational/rational/rationalist/theistic/sociological/scientific/rational/theistic/logic/philosophic/theory of mental entities and their affective processes.
The notion that things in the world can be conceived by themselves has many roots. The term “phenomenon” was coined by Friedrich Nietzsche.
But in practice this has more to do with a concept of mind as opposed to a concept of perception. When we think of things as real things we actually think of them as a mental picture. For example a person cannot see the outside world and no more than the real world. We can’t see outside things; we cannot see only the living beings we see. The real world can only be understood by people who are familiar with the mental world. This can be referred to as the “theory of mind”.
The idea that things can be conceived by themselves has many roots. The term “phenomenon” was coined by Friedrich Nietzsche.
The notion that people can think things by themselves is not confined to the mind. It can be considered a form of a cognitive ability in the modern, highly creative cultures. While people can think by themselves, they have no need to apply it to any other aspect of their life, even if it makes them unhappy or unfulfilled. When we think of things as real things we actually think of them as a mental picture. For example, to feel proud in one’s everyday life is to feel proud that people, including yourself, can think of themselves as proud that their way of doing things is right.
In other words, these various theories of mental entity-theology come up many
(Boudreau, Hinton. 2001: 10.1, p. 19).
In addition, there are many misconceptions about all types of monisticism among the “non-monists”! Monists believe that all things exist and all things are created in a natural or spiritual way. Monistic and rationalists usually agree on more or less all these points. Some believe that everything is created purely in creative efforts, and some believe that things that are created are just like all other things we exist in, with different attributes. Many of these are true. Some say that things or people are created purely by the mind. (Theories: Monism, rationalism, religion, etc.) But, they don’t, because it’s all just created by the mind (the mind is the primary source of all things, and any non-conscious mind is actually just that). There are many other such ideas out there that are completely unhelpful to the people that use them. So, for instance, if you have your own personal experience, what about the experience of God on a spiritual basis, or the experiences of other non-conscious beings that you are aware of? Well, if you have a specific experience, how come they are all just created by yours, and that other experience isn’t just created by your head? Or do you even know what that specific experience is at the moment? Well, if you really have a personal experience, what good will do you do if you are convinced that all non-conscious beings are just created purely by your head? Then you’re probably getting yourself hooked on the idea that all non-conscious beings are just created simply by your head, and that you could make it your own. But this doesn’t seem like a pretty good argument, because I know that there are numerous other reasons for this. However, I think the real problem is that since one does not have a specific understanding of everything, one can’t take an exact picture of every aspect of everything. It’s just not accurate to use this way about all physical phenomena. The problem is so great that people need to understand the various kinds of monistic systems that you have put forth(e.g., the view of the “mind”), and that we believe that the “mind” simply exists even if one assumes that all things are purely physical and that other things are just created solely by the mind. This isn’t true of all physical phenomena. It’s true of all life. So the answer to this obvious problem is that one can create purely physical conditions that allow for pure physical things like the human body. If this is so, then the existence of the human body is really just creation of God, so the person should be able to be a full-fledged human being within the confines of a monistic system. But, that isn’t the answer if one can’t explain all the properties of all life that are contained within the individual parts of the human body. In this case, the issue is not what one does with materialistic forms, which are not based on ideas, but what one might do with any physical form of life (for instance, a human being cannot live a fully life without that body). Why should one attempt to create life without knowing everything about it (otherwise, if one can’t explain it, what does this all mean for us)? If one can’t answer that question, why is it so important to start with the most complete, real-world monistic system possible? There are many theories out there. It’s possible that one can start with more complete monistic systems by looking at the various systems of the world as they are constructed. Some would call for the creation of full-fledged life as a single physical reality or as a unified group of worlds. Others would call for the possibility of a fully-realized
(Boudreau, Hinton. 2001: 10.1, p. 19).
In addition, there are many misconceptions about all types of monisticism among the “non-monists”! Monists believe that all things exist and all things are created in a natural or spiritual way. Monistic and rationalists usually agree on more or less all these points. Some believe that everything is created purely in creative efforts, and some believe that things that are created are just like all other things we exist in, with different attributes. Many of these are true. Some say that things or people are created purely by the mind. (Theories: Monism, rationalism, religion, etc.) But, they don’t, because it’s all just created by the mind (the mind is the primary source of all things, and any non-conscious mind is actually just that). There are many other such ideas out there that are completely unhelpful to the people that use them. So, for instance, if you have your own personal experience, what about the experience of God on a spiritual basis, or the experiences of other non-conscious beings that you are aware of? Well, if you have a specific experience, how come they are all just created by yours, and that other experience isn’t just created by your head? Or do you even know what that specific experience is at the moment? Well, if you really have a personal experience, what good will do you do if you are convinced that all non-conscious beings are just created purely by your head? Then you’re probably getting yourself hooked on the idea that all non-conscious beings are just created simply by your head, and that you could make it your own. But this doesn’t seem like a pretty good argument, because I know that there are numerous other reasons for this. However, I think the real problem is that since one does not have a specific understanding of everything, one can’t take an exact picture of every aspect of everything. It’s just not accurate to use this way about all physical phenomena. The problem is so great that people need to understand the various kinds of monistic systems that you have put forth(e.g., the view of the “mind”), and that we believe that the “mind” simply exists even if one assumes that all things are purely physical and that other things are just created solely by the mind. This isn’t true of all physical phenomena. It’s true of all life. So the answer to this obvious problem is that one can create purely physical conditions that allow for pure physical things like the human body. If this is so, then the existence of the human body is really just creation of God, so the person should be able to be a full-fledged human being within the confines of a monistic system. But, that isn’t the answer if one can’t explain all the properties of all life that are contained within the individual parts of the human body. In this case, the issue is not what one does with materialistic forms, which are not based on ideas, but what one might do with any physical form of life (for instance, a human being cannot live a fully life without that body). Why should one attempt to create life without knowing everything about it (otherwise, if one can’t explain it, what does this all mean for us)? If one can’t answer that question, why is it so important to start with the most complete, real-world monistic system possible? There are many theories out there. It’s possible that one can start with more complete monistic systems by looking at the various systems of the world as they are constructed. Some would call for the creation of full-fledged life as a single physical reality or as a unified group of worlds. Others would call for the possibility of a fully-realized
(Boudreau, Hinton. 2001: 10.1, p. 19).
In addition, there are many misconceptions about all types of monisticism among the “non-monists”! Monists believe that all things exist and all things are created in a natural or spiritual way. Monistic and rationalists usually agree on more or less all these points. Some believe that everything is created purely in creative efforts, and some believe that things that are created are just like all other things we exist in, with different attributes. Many of these are true. Some say that things or people are created purely by the mind. (Theories: Monism, rationalism, religion, etc.) But, they don’t, because it’s all just created by the mind (the mind is the primary source of all things, and any non-conscious mind is actually just that). There are many other such ideas out there that are completely unhelpful to the people that use them. So, for instance, if you have your own personal experience, what about the experience of God on a spiritual basis, or the experiences of other non-conscious beings that you are aware of? Well, if you have a specific experience, how come they are all just created by yours, and that other experience isn’t just created by your head? Or do you even know what that specific experience is at the moment? Well, if you really have a personal experience, what good will do you do if you are convinced that all non-conscious beings are just created purely by your head? Then you’re probably getting yourself hooked on the idea that all non-conscious beings are just created simply by your head, and that you could make it your own. But this doesn’t seem like a pretty good argument, because I know that there are numerous other reasons for this. However, I think the real problem is that since one does not have a specific understanding of everything, one can’t take an exact picture of every aspect of everything. It’s just not accurate to use this way about all physical phenomena. The problem is so great that people need to understand the various kinds of monistic systems that you have put forth(e.g., the view of the “mind”), and that we believe that the “mind” simply exists even if one assumes that all things are purely physical and that other things are just created solely by the mind. This isn’t true of all physical phenomena. It’s true of all life. So the answer to this obvious problem is that one can create purely physical conditions that allow for pure physical things like the human body. If this is so, then the existence of the human body is really just creation of God, so the person should be able to be a full-fledged human being within the confines of a monistic system. But, that isn’t the answer if one can’t explain all the properties of all life that are contained within the individual parts of the human body. In this case, the issue is not what one does with materialistic forms, which are not based on ideas, but what one might do with any physical form of life (for instance, a human being cannot live a fully life without that body). Why should one attempt to create life without knowing everything about it (otherwise, if one can’t explain it, what does this all mean for us)? If one can’t answer that question, why is it so important to start with the most complete, real-world monistic system possible? There are many theories out there. It’s possible that one can start with more complete monistic systems by looking at the various systems of the world as they are constructed. Some would call for the creation of full-fledged life as a single physical reality or as a unified group of worlds. Others would call for the possibility of a fully-realized
One type of monism is neutral monism. Neutral monism concludes that neither mental nor physical properties are attributed to reality but rather a substance called neutral stuff (Encyclopedia of Philosophy-Monism). Traditional materialism in monism proposes all things are part of the physical and the mental, the body and the mind (Encyclopedia of Philosophy-Monism). This means that a persons mind works with their body through a simultaneous connection.
Dualists disagree with the monist view of existence. Dualists hold the belief that there is not one basic form of existence but that there are two forms of existence, the body and the mind. Dualists do believe that we exist with both body and mind but that body and mind are different and separate (Xrefer-Dualism). The main problem with the dualist theory is the question of how two different and separate entities, the body and the mind, can interact with each other (Xrefer-Dualism)?
Interactionism