Religion and Ethics Forum

Religion and Ethics Discussion => Philosophy, in all its guises. => Topic started by: Walt Zingmatilder on March 26, 2019, 01:51:23 PM

Title: Eliminative Materialism
Post by: Walt Zingmatilder on March 26, 2019, 01:51:23 PM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eliminative_materialism

Like the instances i'm familiar with where IMV this philosophy has reared it's head.

thisarticle seems quite sneaky in it's suggestion that any theory which opposes it is to be dismissed as ''Folk''.


However the connection with Dennett marks it worthy of critical analysis.
Title: Re: Eliminative Materialism
Post by: Walt Zingmatilder on March 26, 2019, 02:06:45 PM
eliminate
[ɪˈlɪmɪneɪt]

VERB

To expel Waste matter from the body.
Title: Re: Eliminative Materialism
Post by: jeremyp on March 26, 2019, 02:36:09 PM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eliminative_materialism

Like the instances i'm familiar with where IMV this philosophy has reared it's head.

thisarticle seems quite sneaky in it's suggestion that any theory which opposes it is to be dismissed as ''Folk''.
You misrepresent what the article says. It doesn't use "folk psychology" in a dismissive way and it doesn't say folk psychology is wrong because it is "folk".  The article says - or rather the concept it describes says - that folk psychology will be eliminated because it cannot be reduced in terms of some other science - presumably biology.

eliminate
[ɪˈlɪmɪneɪt]

VERB

To expel Waste matter from the body.

But you know as well as anybody else here that "eliminate" is not used in that sense here.
Title: Re: Eliminative Materialism
Post by: Walt Zingmatilder on March 26, 2019, 04:29:31 PM
You misrepresent what the article says. It doesn't use "folk psychology" in a dismissive way and it doesn't say folk psychology is wrong because it is "folk".  The article says - or rather the concept it describes says - that folk psychology will be eliminated because it cannot be reduced in terms of some other science - presumably biology.
But you know as well as anybody else here that "eliminate" is not used in that sense here.
The article immediately put eliminative materialism in opposition to folk psychology. Not to reductionist materialism, not to Searle or Chambers, but to folk psychology(IMV a patronising and demeaning term) immediately elevating it's credo...including Dennett's explaining away of consciousness...……. above contenders. 
Title: Re: Eliminative Materialism
Post by: wigginhall on March 26, 2019, 04:49:45 PM
It doesn't say that any theory opposing EM  is folk.  For example, reductive materialism is opposed.
Title: Re: Eliminative Materialism
Post by: jeremyp on March 28, 2019, 01:35:15 PM
The article immediately put eliminative materialism in opposition to folk psychology.
Correct.

Quote
but to folk psychology(IMV a patronising and demeaning term) immediately elevating it's credo...including Dennett's explaining away of consciousness...……. above contenders.
No. It doesn't use it in a patronising and demeaning way. And the arguments presented have nothing to do with it being folk. They are all directed to the concepts that are part of folk psychology such as beliefs, desires, pain etc.
Title: Re: Eliminative Materialism
Post by: Steve H on May 17, 2019, 06:42:28 AM
What a load of cobblers - "consciousness does not exist", indeed! Yet more evidence for Orwell's assertion that some ideas are so foolish that only intellectuals could hold them.